Accident-Prone
by MeronS
Summary: Ichimatsu and Jyushimatsu return from a trip to the grocery store. Then there's a black cat, a road and a truck.
1. Chapter 1: A Black Cat

"You think we got everything on the list?" Ichimatsu asks his younger brother as they walk home.

It was a thing they did twice a week. They'd draw a pair of brothers to do go to the mall together, and this week the pair just happened to be the fourth brother, Ichimatsu and the fifth, Jyushimatsu.

"Yes, yes!" was the merry response from the younger, who was swinging his two grocery bags around like crazy. Thank god they didn't contain anything perishable.

"And the change? Did you take it?" Jyushi had been adamant on doing the paying and Ichi had been more than happy to let him handle it. It wasn't like he was interested in social interaction or anything.

"Yes!" and to make it clear Jyushi actually dug up the cash from somewhere deep in his sleeves, "Here!"

"Okay, thanks."

"You think mom and dad are doing grocery shopping too?"

A stupid question. Well, nothing out of the usual coming from Jyushi, though. The Matsuno brothers' parents had gone to a month-long trip off to 'anywhere else but Japan' as they had said and left the six to fend for themselves. Not that the brothers could blame them. They needed a vacation after looking after their sons when they all got simultaneously sick about a week ago. It had been a stomach bug, and had lasted for five days straight.

"They're bound to go shopping at some point" Ichimatsu simply stated, hoping the simple answer would make his brother shut up.

"Of course", Jyushi nodded to himself.

At that exact moment a black cat, obviously stray, wandered from the bushes straight to the brothers' path. It mewled in hunger and rubbed its sleek body against Ichi's leg. It hit the bullseye, Ichi's weak spot. There was no running away from this now. They'd have to feed the cat or die trying.

"Kitty!" Jyushi exclaimed, "It's hungry."

"Didn't you have the treats in your bag?" Ichi asked his brother while petting the cat, mumbling sweet nonsenses to it.

Jyushi dug around the grocery store's cheap plastic bag for a good minute before triumphantly raising a bag or treats hight above his head.

'It wasn't like he had found the rarest item on some stupid RPG game or anything. What was the point in making that pose?' Ichimatsu thought to himself but accepted the offered bag.

It wasn't like the rest of the brothers financially supported Ichimatsu's hobby. He had bought the treats with his own pocket money and was going to use them however he pleased. This kitty clearly needed some food, so it would get some. Ichimatsu scooped a handful of treats out of the bag and handed them to the stray.

"He likes them!" Jyushi stated the obvious crouching down with his brother, "He has a round white spot on his fur. I'll call him baseball!"

Ichi felt like laughing to his brother's weird logic and naming skills but decided against it, "How about Batter? I mean you use bats in baseball and naming a cat 'baseball' is a bit harsh."

Jyushi was deep in thought, or at least Ichimatsu thought he was because he had some serious wrinkles on his forehead, "Batter…Batter!"

Ichi had to actually lift the cat to his arms to prevent his crazy happy brother from mauling it with affection. He could be friendly but controlling his strength was one of Jyushi's weaknesses. He'd kill the poor creature.

The cat didn't seem to be one of those lap cats you could carry around. No, it got straight out mad scratching and growling. In the end Ichi had to let go and watch the cat go. He was sad. He thought they'd become friends. Following the cats retreating form Ichimatsu noticed, to his horror that the cat was heading straight towards a busy road.

He panicked. The cat was going to get run over! He had to do something. But before he could even move, he saw a flash of yellow and his younger brother was on the road.

"Jyushimatsu!" Ichimatsu screamed uncharacteristically.

The next thing he saw was a truck colliding with his brother and blood. A lot of blood. And when the initial shock wore off to the extent he could hear again, he heard the screams and calls for an ambulance.

He had to go. He had to go to his brother. His precious little brother. His little brother who was lying on the concrete with a large gash visible on his head. His right hand seemed off too, it was bruised, scraped and twisted. It was his throwing hand too, Ichimatsu found himself chocking.

He quietly sat onto the ground next to his fallen brother and lifted his head to his knees. He should have minded any possible spinal injury, he remembered a bit later.

Jyushimatsu opened his eyes. They were hazy and confused and the lazy eye was all over the place. Ichimatsu wiped the blood off his brother's brow before it could get into his eyes.

"H-How…the c-cat?" Jyushi tried to speak but his speech was groggy.

Ichi, chocked with his tears again told his brother the cat was alright and that the ambulance would be coming. He'd need to stay awake until that.

"Why an ambu-ambulence? Did you…cut youself Icthi?" Jyushi's voice was getting even harder to understand and the confusion was clear in his expression.

"I'm all okay. You're the one hurt here", he didn't want to go into too much detail.

"Oh, okay. Can I sleep Ichi? M tired."

"No, not yet Jyushi. I told you to stay awake", Ichimatsu told his brother.

"But sleepy."

Ichimatsu had to come up with a plan to keep his brother alert or he was going to faint before the ambulance arrives, "Hey Jyushi, do you remember what vegetables we bought? I was thinking of making a hotpot for tonight but I can't remember if we have enough ingredients."

It was a farfetched idea but it got Jyushi's eyes open, "Carrots and a cu-cucumber. Leek?"

"Yes, we did buy those", Ichimatsu hoped the ambulance would be there already. He could see his little brother was losing the fight to sleep.

"On-onions and sweet…sweet?"

"Sweet potatoes? Yes", he could finally hear the sirens.

"Ichi? Why is it so dark?" Jyshi suddenly asked sounding frightened.

"I-It's because the clouds are blocking the sun!" he lied. His brother had closed his eyes and his head lulled on his brother's knees.

"It's….cold too."

Ichimatsu couldn't do anything. He was helpless, "I'll give you my hoodie. It'll warm you up. The ambulance is right here."

When the paramedics arrived to the scene in less than a minute, the younger Matsuno brother had succumbed to loss of blood or something worse and his brother was frantically trying to wake him up. It was a wrestle to get the older brother off the patient. In the end they decided to take him to the ambulance too, since he was in a shock.

They gave Ichimatsu an orange blanket he didn't notice. They tried to get him to lay down but he wouldn't budge from his brother's side. They tried to get them to explain what happened. He didn't answer. He just kept staring at his little brother who looked so fragile on the stretcher. His skin was getting paler by the minute and the paramedics were shouting to each other to hurry up.

When they finally arrived to the hospital, Jyushimatsu was wheeled off into an operating room. A doctor, a kind looking elderly man, came to Ichimatsu and told him all he could do was to wait and inform any relatives.

At that moment something clicked inside Ichi's mind. He hadn't told the rest of the sixtruplets anything yet. He fished his phone out of his pocket halting. Who would he call? Everyone was in work and wouldn't pick up if busy. Osomatsu! He'd have to answer after looking at the caller ID. He'd know something was wrong. A big brother would feel it in his guts.

A couple beeps later the oldest brother picked up, "What is it Ichimatsu? Did you two get lost or something? Does the store not have something on the list?"

"It's Jyushimatsu!" Ichimatsu screamed to the speaker, "There was this black cat, Batter. Then there was this road… and, and a truck. Jyushimatsu has… Jyushimatsu!"

"Calm down!" Osomatsu told his little brother who was beginning to hyperventilate. This kind of action was so unlike of the brother that Osomatsu knew right away that something had upset Ichimatsu, and a lot.

Ichimatsu took a deep, calming breath before continuing with his failed explanation, "Jyushi was… Jyushi was hit by a truck. He tried to save the cat."

The message clearly went through this time, "In which hospital are you?! I'll call the rest! We'll be right there!"

"We're in the one near the station. The one mom takes us."

"Okay!" there was rustling on the line when the oldest brother got dressed while probably holding the phone on his free hand, "You stay there and report any changes in Jyushi's situation and yours too. You're in a shock. Calm down."

"O-Okay."

"We'll be right there", was the final thing Osomatsu told his brother before quitting the call.

The rest of the six brothers arrived in half an hour which was fast considering they were all working prior to Osomatsu calling them. Ichimatsu was bombarded with questions about Jyushi's condition to which he sadly had no answers. All they could do is wait for the doctor to come tell them how the operation went. The doctor had told Ichimatsu his brother had not only lost blood but also had some in his brain. The broken hand would need to be looked at too.

It was late evening when the doctor finally came to the brothers sitting on the uncomfortable hospital chairs, "The good news are that your brother is out of the surgery. We managed to stitch everything back together. The bad news are that he is currently in a coma and we have no idea when he will wake up and how he'll be afterwards."

"What do you mean 'how he'll be'?" Choromatsu voiced his concern.

The doctor remained as stoic as ever, "Your brother had bleeding in his brain. We don't know how that will affect him when he wakes up."

It was Karamatsu's turn to butt in, "Jyushimatsu is Jyushimatsu he'll be back to his cheery self in no time."

"What I'm saying is that the brain damage could change your brother's personality", the doctor continued,

"Why Jyushimatsu? What has he done to deserve any of this?" Todomatsu was weeping, comforted by Osomatsu.

"If you want to go and see him he is in the room number 050", the doctor said before turning away.

"Come on, let's go", Osomatsu said, leading the group to the hospital room's door.

They all stopped in from of the plain, boring door. Would they want to see the damage done to their brother? Looking at Ichimatsu's reaction it was going to be pretty gruesome.

Surprisingly, Ichimatsu was the one to open the door. He stepped into the room and plopped down onto a chair next to the hospital bed. He took his brothers arm to his own and just sat there.

The room was white, too white. Even the only resident didn't bring any color to it. Jyushimatsu was still too pale. He was hooked to many machines that kept beeping away eerily. As if counting the time their brother had left.

Jyushi's calm and quiet breathing could be heard through the machinery. It calmed the brothers down a bit as they all sat around the lonely bed.

"He won't be able to play baseball with that hand", Todomatsu stated sadly, "It was his better throwing hand too."

Choromatsu looked at the bandaged hand lying on the white sheets, "I guess he won't. We'll have to get some therapy for it."

"How are we going to pay for that all? The therapy I mean" Karamatsu pointed out. It was clear they could never afford the therapy with their current financial situation. They'd all need to get second jobs.

"I already informed mom and dad about the situation. They said they would pay the hospital bill but any other costs would be our responsibility", Osomatsu said.

He knew their parents were being fair. They were over 20 year old after all. Proper adults should be able to pay for themselves. In jyushimatsu's situation, it was a different story though. He had looked for a job many times and gotten to a couple of interviews too but it always ended up failing. He hadn't gotten any job in the over three years of him trying to get one. The rest of the brothers had agreed that Jyushi could pursue his baseball career while the rest of the brothers would take care of the money.

"We need part-time jobs", Choromatsu sighed, already flipping through his phone trying to find ads for well-paying jobs.

"I'll take some more shifts in the café", Todomatsu piped in.

Karamatsu flipped his hair, "Maybe I should try modeling."

"It hurts!"

"How about construction sites? We have a lot of those in our area", Osomatsu asked.

"You'd need physical strength. It's not fit for all of us", Todomatsu pointed out mostly referring to himself and Ichimatsu.

"Okay, me and Karamatsu will look into it", Osomatsu told Choromatsu with a nod, "How about you?"

"I have some contacts. I'll manage", Choromatsu answered still on his phone, this time sending e-mails.

"T-Then, I'll ask the guys at the shelter", Ichimatsu suddenly whispered from his seat.

Ichimatsu didn't really have an official job. He worked at a local shelter for cats, dogs and other domesticated animals. It was volunteer work, so he didn't get paid.

"Great! Then we're set!" Todomatsu cheered quietly.

"Hey guys, you think one of us should stay here for the night? I mean, it would be pretty horrible to wake up alone in a hospital bed", Osomatsu asked his brothers.

"I'll stay. The guys at the café are all good people, they'll understand way better than your employers", Todomatsu offered.

"Alright! Then, everyone else, off we go!" Osomatsu said taking a firm grip on the fourth brother's hood.

"I'll stay too", Ichimatsu tried to protest but was dragged away anyways.

"You need your sleep Ichimatsu!" Todomatsu shouted after his brothers.

When the group was sure to have left the building, Todomatsu sat to the now empty chair next to the bed, "What are we going to do with you? You're way too prone to accidents."


	2. Chapter 2: Little Brother

The nurse came somewhere around 9 PM. Todomatsu greeted the young female. Her only response was a sympathetic glance before scurrying out of the door. Not a chance.

She had jotted down something on her clipboard. Some information for the doctor Totty wouldn't have any hope of understanding.

It probably read that the situation hadn't changed at all. Even Todomatsu could see that. His brother had just arrived. There was no way he would be up in a second after a crash with a truck. He was tough, though, Totty gave him that.

He had already made the call to his boss. He had been understanding, although all Todomatsu had told him was that he couldn't come to work. He didn't want to go into too much detail. Totty didn't want to admit that his brother was in a hospital. He didn't want to admit that his brother might never play baseball again. He didn't want to admit that his brother might never wake up.

"You really are dumbass. Don't scare me like that", Todomatsu told to his brother sleeping away on the bed.

The doctor had told the brothers that Jyushimatsu might be able to hear them and that a familiar voice might help him wake up. Osomatsu had ordered him to speak to his older brother. Not that he'd need to order him. He'd do it anyways. When asked what would be a good topic, he had simply told the youngest to come up with something.

Something nostalgic and fun for Jyushi.

Baseball it was.

Jyushi had always loved baseball, for some unknown reason. Maybe it was to channel out the rage he had towards Karamatsu and his awful taste. No, that couldn't be it. His cheerful big brother could never hate anyone. Totty could've bet he didn't even know what 'rage' meant. Of course he was a little pissed off sometimes, or frustrated, but he always seemed to find a way to instantly calm down. Calm down as much as Jyushimatsu was able to.

Totty's brother's cheerful exterior had only cracked a handful of times. The latest being that girl he had really liked. And like usually, when something cracked, it all came falling down. The Matsuno brothers had tried cheering up their brother for weeks. After the third week, Jyushi was suddenly just, well, okay again.

Todomatsu had actually trained with his brother when they were younger. He'd be the one to throw the ball and Jyushi would hit a homerun. Every time.

It was a welcome change to the brothers' hectic school days. There was bullying, bad scores and stupid club activities no one was interested in. School had just been a place they had to go to. They didn't really like it there.

Friends had been nice of course. But things usually went awry when the friend didn't like one of the brothers.

The brothers kept together, meaning that friend wouldn't hang out with them anymore.

It was usually either Ichimatsu or Jyushimatsu the friends ended up hating. The other couldn't care less and the other didn't really understand the mean words.

Now that Totty actually thought about it, Jyushi's weird behavior might be a result of the constant bullying.

The reason why Todomatsu had agreed to even throw the ball was because of a big game Jyushi's team was having. They had challenged the local champions to a match. Jyushi had been super excited about the game, of course. To the point that baseball was the only thing he'd speak of.

They had trained together for two weeks.

Ichimatsu had sometimes joined them. Though he just looked from the bench and threw some comments all while petting some random cat he'd come across.

Osomatsu would join in the fun by telling his brother to calm down. He'd say their team would never win with a vibrator as a batter.

The rest of the brothers were too busy to actually join the training. They'd ask how everything went later that day when they were all sitting around the dining table.

When the day of the game finally came, Totty made sure to be in the crowd. The rest of the brothers were there too, of course. They'd never want to miss their little brother's big game.

The opponents were huge. Talking about mass here. To be honest, the brothers thought they were looking at Hulk's less green companions all playing baseball in one team.

And the captain. He was the biggest, meanest looking player they had ever seen.

They had all though baseball players were all goofy and fun, like Jyushi and his team. Jyushi's team did this for fun. The opposing team seemed to do it for some other reason. Money? Fame? The brothers couldn't decide on a motive, so they focused their attention on the game once again.

To everyone's surprise, Jyushi and his team were winning. Well, with Jyushi, who'd been hitting homeruns, and homeruns only, from the first round forward, it was no wonder. The other team wasn't far behind and they were quickly catching up.

The next ball would decide it all. It was the opponents turn. The captain would be hitting.

Jyushi, number 14, in his bright yellow shirt would be the in the field. He'd be right in front, ready to catch the ball.

Looking at the concentration on their brother's face, the brothers were disappointed that he couldn't use the same ability when it came to studying. He'd ace any subject.

There it was. The pitcher threw the ball. There was an audible noise when the wooden bat hit the defenseless leather ball, sending it flying through the field.

The ball didn't make it far.

There was another sound following the bat hitting the ball. It was a 'splat' sound and it echoed through the field.

Everyone was quiet. Even the birds seemed to understand to shut it for once.

Jyushimatsu was hit. With a baseball. A heavy, leather ball.

Their miniature sun of a brother was lying face first in the dirt holding his eye in pain.

'They had to get in there', they thought, already halfway through the field.

"Ow, ow, ow!" Jyushi mumbled in pain as the brothers crowded around him forming a protective circle.

"Where does it hurt?" Karamatsu asked his brother, concerned.

"His eye of course, Shittymatsu. Or have your stupid pants finally blinded you?" Ichimatsu retorted.

Osomatsu hit the both on the head, gently, "Shut it."

The school nurse arrived within a minute and gave Jyushimatsu an icepack to hold on the eye. She told the ambulance would arrive shortly.

His eye would need to be checked at. Make sure his eyesight was working properly.

"You're gonna look like a panda after this", Choromatsu said, trying to lighten up the mood.

"Pandas have two black eyes. I only have one", Jyushi grinned. A feeling of relief washed over the group. He was smiling.

But Totty wasn't having any of it, "Jyushi, does it hurt? No one can see you from here. You can cry it out."

"No, it doesn't hurt. Really."

"Thank god. I thought I'd have a heart attack when I saw you on the ground!" Totty believed his brother's word.

"We won, though."

"Who cares!" the brothers shouted in unison. All except Karamatsu and Ichimatsu.

The two had grabbed the captain, the one who hit the ball, and dragged him all the way behind the school. Let's just censor out what happened next. He could be found in the local hospital's intensive care the following day.

The ambulance arrived and took the brothers, all of them, to the hospital.

After a long evening of testing the eye, the doctor's diagnosis was nerve damage. He told them Jyushi would have a lazy eye, probably for the rest of his life.

Jyushi himself took the news quite well. The others not so much.

They began thinking how hard it'd be for him to get a job in the future. They also thought how the rest of the school would get a new reason to bully their brother. They'd come up with stupid nicknames for sure.

After returning home, the brothers had a party for Jyushi's win. They had planned to have one all the same, win or not. The injury didn't bother their brother, so there was really no reason to cancel anything.

They had a cake and everything. Jyushi seemed to really enjoy everything, too. He'd tell how he hit the ball over the fence and how he made it to the base at the last second.

The brothers listened. They knew it all though. They had been watching it all happen. It was fun to hear their brother's take on everything. It all suddenly seemed much more exciting.

The following weeks were hard for Jyushi. He had to get used to the lazy eye and the shouts from his classmates.

Totty, with some help from Karamatsu, had made an eye patch for him. To help prevent any unnecessary attention and to give Jyushi some more time with the eye.

He learned fast. The eye would stay at its usual place as long as Jyushimatsu didn't get too excited or anxious.

His brothers would tell him about it saying, 'Lazy eye', anytime it happened without the owner of the eye realizing.

Totty looked back at those times fondly. He felt like he was really close to his big brother that time.

Now that he was in the same hospital once again, everything came back. He remembered spending many hours at the clinic trying to make his brother sit still and wait for the doctor.

He'd bring games and they'd play while their mother spoke with the doctor. He'd also come to the room. To make sure his brother was okay.

Jyushi still had to go to the doctor from time to time. Just to check how his eye was doing. It hadn't worsened or anything, but just in case.

"I think I still have your eye patch somewhere. I should make you a new one!" Todomatsu began chatting with his sleeping brother fixing his hair while doing so.

"I'll look for cool designs", he told his brother and swiped his smartphone open, "Ah, this one looks cool! I'll describe it for you. You can decide whether you like it or not."

The duo continued with their mission of finding the perfect design for an eye patch for the rest of the night.

Totty only noticed the time when Osomatsu send him a message asking how everything had been and that Ichi was on his way. He had packed some food with him and told Totty to eat it before coming back home to catch some sleep. Maybe he could calm his brother down a bit along the way. He was still upset about what happened.

"We've been looking for part-time jobs. Well, Choromatsu has, for us. We're going to pay for all your treatments. We'll get that hand to work again. Then, we'll train your pitch once again. I know what you'd say. I'm your little brother after all. Just let us do it. We know you'd be mad but it's something we all decided together. We'll come and watch you play after you've healed, okay?"

Ichimatsu arrived in fifteen minutes. A new record. He had never been that fast to arrive anywhere.

"Hi Ichi, slept well?"

"Not really?" he grumbled.

Totty sighed, "It's not your fault. You got to realize that. Besides, Jyushi wouldn't want to see you like this. He'd be upset."

Hit the nail on the head. Ichimatsu actually looked guilty for sulking.

"Bu-but still…"

"No buts! Now sit down, give me my food and tell me how the things are at home. I don't want to return to a chaos."

"Everyone went to work like usual. Osomatsu made you food and fussed over me."

"Of course he would."

"Shittymatsu offered to give me a ride but I declined."

"Of course you would."

"He didn't look as shitty as usual in the morning though. It didn't hurt as much, the shine."

"Stress."

"Huh?"

"Karamatsu is stressed. He probably should be the next one to stay for the night."

"He can't. He took a night shift with Osomatsu."

"Oh, gotta tell them not to overwork themselves."

"You too Totty."

"What?"

"Nothing. Just go already. You look dead tired."

"Okay, I'll be sending someone in the evening. See ya. Text if something happens. I mean right away!"

"Yeah, yeah."

After the door had closed, the fourth Matsuno brother sat down and took his brother's hand to his own, like he had did the last time.

"Good morning, Jyushimatsu. What should we talk about today?"


	3. Chapter 3: Don't Worry, We're Here

Ichimatsu is greeted by Jyushi's doctor when he arrives to the room. He's doing the morning's check-ups for the patients. Much to Ichi's dislike, the doctor takes his brother with him to do some scans. Make sure the swelling in his brain had lessened.

Despite knowing the procedure was necessary, he still didn't want to be left alone in the hospital room with his thoughts. He'd begin thinking of worst case scenarios.

The doctor came back after an hour, his brother in tow pushed by Jyushi's nurse.

"The swelling has started subsiding. It's still severe but I think he's out of the woods now", the doctor explained to Ichi, who listened with a seemingly uninterested expression.

"How long do you think it'll take for him to wake up?" Ichimatsu asked, honestly curious of the doctor's opinion.

"A week at least."

"Okay, thanks", the fourth brother said to the doctor leaving the room.

"Knowing you though, I think you'll be up in a week at most", Ichi told his comatose brother, "You're too hyper to stay asleep for that long."

He talked about his night. How he couldn't sleep and ESP Kitty had kept him company throughout the night. The cat wasn't his or anything, so it did so in his own free will.

The black cat Jyushi had rescued, Batter, had also reappeared. It had been begging for more food at their door step when Ichi had been leaving. He had fed the cat.

The accident was an accident, it was neither Ichimatsu's nor the cat's fault. There was no reason to hate the little thing. Batter had actually ended up followed Ichi all the way to the hospital.

Ichi's hoodie moved, "They said no cats in hospitals but I think they can make an exception. This little guy just had to come and see you."

Ichimatsu lifted the hem of his hoodie and out came Batter, mewing loudly. It jumped on Jyushi's bed, circled around exactly 540 degrees and lied down on the patient's feet.

"He'd be super happy to see you doing well."

A meow.

"They said a week at least. Be patient."

The three of them, well, two, shared thoughts for the rest of the day.

When Osomatsu arrived, Karamatsu with him, the scene he was faced with when opening the door was worth sending to the rest of the brothers. Ichimatsu was sleeping on the hospital's plastic chair, bend so that his upper body was lying on the bed next to Jyushi. On Jyushi lied a sleek, black cat purring loudly.

"Take a picture, brother", Karamatsu nudged Osomatsu.

"Took one already. Totty said he loved it and would be using it for blackmailing Ichi later."

Karamatsu chuckled, "That vile-monster", he knew his younger brother was lying.

Osomatsu sneaked next to his sleeping brother and shook him, "Come on Ichi. Time to go. You can sleep back home on a comfortable bed."

"Hm", Ichimatsu mumbled, "It's nice here."

"Don't worry brother. I'll sing you a lullaby when we get home. You'll fall asleep instantly", Karamatsu remarked.

That woke Ichimatsu up, "Why is Shittymatsu here?"

"I thought he'd get you to move. I'll stay for the night. Decided to skip work today. Karamatsu will work for both of us."

"Lazyass."

"I'm honored. Come on, off with you two. Go get some sleep."

Karamatsu began dragging his brother away. The oldest brother was laughing his ass off as he watched the performance. It was a great idea to bring together these two natural enemies.

Osomatsu then turned to glare at the cat, "You too, hush. The doctor doesn't need to see you here. He'll ban us from coming."

A cat making the puppy dog eyes. How ironical.

"Don't you try making those eyes!"

More puppy eyes.

A sigh, "Okay, okay. You can stay for this night but I'll take you with me when I leave. No buts!"

The cat curled up on his brother's feet more comfortably, ready for a long night. A satisfying answer it seemed.

"And I thought Jyushi was more of a dog person. Oh well", Osomatsu scratched the cat under its chin.

Osomatsu told Jyushi how his brothers had found his secret porn stack. He was of course lying but he thought that the terrifying news might help his brother wake up.

He told Jyushi how he had seen the biggest kabuto beetle ever on the way to the hospital. Osomatsu decided the brothers had to go bug hunting after Jyushi's release from the hospital. He'd win of course. He was the oldest after all.

"Oh right! We brothers had a serious conversation for once! It was about work. As you might already know, I and Karamatsu got ourselves part-time jobs at a construction site. The one next to the udon shop."

The boss was a pain of course, bossy and smelled like tobacco. The pay was good, so the brothers didn't complain.

"Choromatsu told us he had 'asked his friends' for any open places. We all know he had searched through every single paper for ads before finding us our jobs."

Osomatsu giggled, "Yeah, and Totty took the extra shifts. His working really hard for the money. He even went to work today! After pulling an all-nighter with you! I'll make sure he takes only one shift for tomorrow. He needs sleep."

The nurse arrived to check on Jyushi before the night shift's workers would arrive. She greeted Osomatsu, checked his brother's vitals and wrote the information down before leaving. Osomatsu sat quiet the whole time. He didn't even ask any questions about his brother's condition. He believed he had heard everything topical from Ichimatsu.

"You can't believe this! You know Ichimatsu works at the shelter, right? He actually talked with his coworkers and managed to make a deal with them. He'll get paid! It's his first official job! We're so proud! I bet he didn't tell you that himself. He's way too modest with you."

"All in all, you brothers are a handful" Osomatsu yawned, "We're getting there though. Flappymatsu, sorry, I mean Choromatsu made some research on the possible treatments. He says we might be able to make the money for all of them. You'll be able to play baseball in no time!"

There was a long pause, "All you need to do now is to wake up. Please."

When Ichimatsu opens the door the following morning he almost trips. When looking for what the thing was, he saw a magazine. Then another one. Porn, fucking, magazines on his little brother's hospital room's floor.

"Osomatsu! You little shit!" Ichimatsu roars as he shakes his slumbering brother.

"Wh-What?" Osomatsu asks wiping some drool off his face.

"What are these?!"

Osomatsu looks puzzled for a split second, "Ohh, those? I brought my best ladies to keep Jyushi some company. I introduced them last night."

If human flesh could boil, Ichimatsu would be steaming, "Take your girls and leave", he said with a low voice.

"Okay, okay. We'll leave. Take care", before closing the door behind him, Osomatsu turned to his brother, "Tell Jyushi about your new job. He seemed interested."

That jerk. He had told him. That annoying grin adoring Osomatsu's face as he left told the whole story.

"Fuck you!" Ichimatsu screamed after his brother who, accompanied by his 'ladies' and Batter, left the hospital building.

"Hmph, what an idiot", Ichimatsu muttered under his breath as he sat down on the plastic chair once again.

"Good morning Jyushimatsu. It's a nice day out."


	4. Chapter 4: A Helping Hand

While Ichimatsu stayed in the hospital for yet another day, Osomatsu decided he'd vacuum the house. Everyone else was somewhere doing something useful. He felt obligated to do something too.

And what would be more useful than cleaning in a household of eight.

Osomatsu couldn't even begin to imagine all the dust poodles he'd chase out or the spoiled foods behind every cranny of the fridge. He'd need to get busy if he wanted everything to be done before his brothers' shifts would end.

He never got to cleaning though. When he arrived to their apartment there was an old lady standing in front of their door. She looked like she was searching for something.

"Excuse me, are you looking for someone?" Osomatsu asked the old lady.

She was a kind-looking, grey haired lady who was holding a bag of what must have been full of pastries. She struck Osomatsu as a true grandmother character who'd feed her grandchildren delicious food until they'd explode. And after surviving the initial blast of her grandchildren's guts, she'd ask if any of them wanted seconds.

"Oh, hello! I was looking for Jyushimatsu Matsuno but when I knocked there was no reply. I wonder if he's not home", the granny told Osomatsu.

"I'm his older brother actually. Why don't you come in and sit down. You can explain everything there", the oldest brother suggested trying to sound as polite as possible.

The old lady focused her eyes on Osomatsu's face, "Now that you mention it. You two do look quite alike. Osomatsu is your name, right? Jyushi has told me a lot about you brothers."

"O-Oh, really, Miss?" Osomatsu was getting worried. Who was this lady and how did she know their brother?

"Quit with the formalities young man, they're quite dull. Just call me Granny."

As the two stepped into the apartment, Osomatsu wished he had had some time to tidy up the place before the surprise guest's arrival.

It looked like a hurricane had come and ripped through their apartment. There were clothes and trash everywhere.

A thin cloud of dust particles danced in the morning sun glistening from the living room window.

Yet the granny didn't even stop to inspect the damage. She calmly walked across the living room and sat on a pillow next to the brothers' dining table.

"I'll make us some tea", Osomatsu offered nervously.

Granny smiled her loving smile, "But of course! I brought some of your brother's favorite pies with me but seeing he's not here I guess we could take one and eat it with our tea."

Osomatsu was kind of excited. Homemade pies from a grandmother. They must taste heavenly!

He brought some tea to the both of them and sat down with Granny with a serious expression adoring his face, "I'm going to go straight to the point. How do you know Jyushimatsu? Our brother isn't one to socialize with other people so I find it weird that you know him so well."

"Your brother works for me", Granny said dead serious whilst sipping her tea.

"He what?!" Osomatsu in turn almost spit out his tea after hearing what the old lady had said.

"As I said, he works for me. I guess I'll have to explain myself here", she took a more comfortable position on the floor, preparing herself for a long story, "One day, two or three months ago, I was walking home from the local mall with a lot bunch of bags. It was raining cats and dogs, so the pavement was slippery and I fell."

After a long day of training homerun hits with his trusty bat, Jyushimatsu was heading home. He had dirtied himself throughoutly. Probably to the point that even the shirt under his yellow jersey wasn't safe.

He was starving and thinking of stopping by the nearest shop to buy something small. Just a snack. He didn't want to starve to death on the way home.

As he was making his way towards a nice shop selling savory pastries, he saw an old lady slip and fall down on the hard pavement.

The sprinted to the scene, "Are you alright?! Not hurt anywhere? Should I call the cops?"

The old lady just seemed to be amused by the young man's concern, "Yes, I am. Would you help me stand up? My old legs don't work as well as they used to. And by the way, it's the ambulance, not the police."

"Ah, right! Ambulance", Jyushi mumbled as he helped her up.

He took her bags, seemingly full of groceries and offered to carry them for her.

"You really want to help, huh? Alright, follow me."

The two arrived to the granny's house. An old wooden building with a shop built in.

"You sell cakes?" Jyushi asked excited after skimming through the shop window.

The granny laughed, "I do many things, not only cakes. Would you like to have a taste? Consider it a thank you for your help."

"Of course! I'd love some!"

She opened the door and slid it open with an audible creak. It needed some oiling.

There's an even coat of dust mixed with flour on every open surface. The windows haven't been cleaned in over a decade and the garden is a mess. Even changing the sheets has been difficult. So you can imagine the chaos they both stepped into.

"Woooooow, so dirty!" Jyushi exclaimed. He was too honest for his own good.

"I haven't been able to do the cleaning lately. I hope you don't mind too much", she told Jyushi as she stepped into her small kitchen to prepare something for the both of them. They needed something warm to drink after walking in the cold rain, "Coffee or tea?"

"Tea, please. My brothers keep telling me I should never drink coffee", Jyushi shouted back wandering into the living room, "It really is dusty in here."

"If it bothers you that much why not take a duster and take it off?" the old lady laughed from the kitchen, "Everything is in the second cupboard from the left. On your knee height I think."

There was the unmistakable sound of heavy rummaging and a triumphant 'aha!' from the living room. The owner of the house couldn't help but smile.

"Do you like bugs?" Jyushi asked from the kitchen's doorway. He had, not one but two, dusters in his other hand and in other he was holding an old plastic cage used to keep bugs in after capturing them.

"So you found that old thing?" she wasn't even mad that her quest had apparently gone through each one of her cupboards in search of the dusters despite her clear instructions, "Yes, I used to love collecting them. Had a book with me and everything. So that I could identify each little critter."

Jyushi's eyes were sparkling, "Really?! Can we go catch some now?! Miss…?"

"Just call me Granny. Everyone else does too", she told the hyper boy and brought the tea to the dining table guiding the boy to sit down with her, "And no, we can't go catch any bugs."

"Eeeeeeh?! Why not?" Jyushi whined while drooling over the pastries Granny had brought with her.

"Look outside", she explained and after making sure the other was looking she continued, "It's raining. There will be no bugs out in this weather."

It was like a light bulb had been lit, "Of course! Bugs hate rain! Can we go after the rain has stopped?"

"Of course, but I guess I'm not the best possible company."

"Of course you are! I bet you can name tons of different bugs! I can handle the catching part then you can name them for me!" Jyushi cheered with a mouth full of one of Granny's pastries.

She giggled which soon broke out into an all-out laughter, "If that's so, I need to show you my pictures! I used to photograph the bugs I'd catch, too."

"Really?!" Jyushi bolted up and made his way towards the cupboards once again, "Where are they?"

"The one in the middle, topmost self."

Jyushi almost ended up dropping all of the albums but in the end he managed to take them all out one at a time. He brought them to the table and sat down looking more excited than ever.

"Let's see", Granny flipped through the first one stopping to show a picture to her guest, "Here's a kabuto beetle I found in a nearby forest not too far away from here. Isn't it huge? I bet it was the biggest I have ever found."

"So cool! How about this one?" the two would continue flipping through the albums for hours.

Jyushi would point out a picture he found interesting and Granny would tell him the story behind it. They were both having a blast.

The sun had begun to set when the duo ended their conversation. The tea and the treats were long gone and Granny was thinking she'd need to offer her guest dinner soon. He was sure to be hungry once again.

"Is it okay for you to stay here for this long? What about dinner?"

"Oh, dinner!" Jyushi had forgot, "But I promised you I'd help you clean up…"

Granny smiled, "Listen. Why don't you come back tomorrow? You can help me then and we can continue our conversation."

"Is that really okay?"

"Of course! I haven't had this much fun in ages!" Granny laughed, "Here, take these with you. They're bread from my store. As a thank you for what you've done today. I really don't have any money to give to you-"

"Woooow, they look so delicious! My brothers will love these!" Jyushi interrupted marveling the contents of the bag Granny had given him, "Thank you so much!"

"You're welcome. Say, do you have any favorite foods? I was thinking I could bake you something for tomorrow."

"Hmmmm", Jyushi was deep in thought for a couple of minutes, "Nope! I don't have any favorites. We don't get to eat that many pastries at home so I wouldn't really know what is my favorite."

"That is a problem… How about I make you as many different ones as possible and you can pick a favorite from those? I'll give you some to take home too."

"Really?! You'd bake for me?" Jyushi's eyes looked like stars and he was drooling all over.

"Of course! You're going to help me clean up my house after all!"

"Roger that! I'll be back tomorrow morning!" Jyushi saluted before going.

He was going to have so much fun surprising his brothers with some fresh bread. He wasn't going to tell them where he had got them though. It'd be a secret.

As promised, Jyushimatsu was knocking behind Granny's door the following morning. The clock only read eight o'clock but Granny couldn't have cared less. She was happy to get company.

Jyushi helped her get the shop ready for the day by carrying all kinds of different baked goods to the display. He'd of course taste every one of them before placing them down. Granny let him do just that. She had actually made extra just to give to the boy.

After that was done it was time to welcome the morning's regular customers. Jyushi wasn't one to count money so he'd pack the goods into paper bags while Granny would handle the money.

Jyushi would greet everyone with a cheerful 'hello' and listen to their stories with sparkling eyes.

He got to pet three different dogs. One of them licked his face clean while another one got so excited it tackled him down. Jyushi wasn't mad of course. He was laughing and praising the dog for its strength.

One child even gave him some chestnuts. She was a shy one. She whispered him they were her treasure but the nice man could have them. Jyushi slipped her a cookie before she left the shop and thanked for the treasure.

Jyushi had gotten popular in the course of one busy morning. The old ladies would tell Granny she had gotten an excellent little helper. The older men would praise his good manners and enthusiasm. The little kids and their parents would laugh at his weird antics. Jyushi's official fanclub had been formed.

Granny closed the shop during lunchtime and opened up again when people would begin to come home from work. They'd have some hours to clean up the house.

Granny took a rag to dust off and polish the surfaces she could reach whilst Jyushimatsu took control of a vacuum cleaner. It was fancier than the one the brothers had at home.

He had a blast vacuuming and soon took over the dusting reaching every corner of the apartment.

After that was done, with record speed, he asked if he could take care of the windows too. Granny of course said yes but decided to join in on the mission.

The two washed and polished the glass windows. In the end they both were soaking wet after Jyushi had decided to hose the windows down. He had lost the control of the thing and ended up spraying them both with ice-cold water.

Granny had laughed it all off telling Jyushi she would go and make them some hot chocolate to warm them up. Jyushi offered to dry everything off.

The apartment was beginning to look a lot cleaner when the two sat down for a cup of hot chocolate.

Granny made sure she told Jyushi how happy she was with the results. He had just laughed and told her how much fun he had had and that next time they should go hunt some bugs in the garden.

"We need to tidy it up a bit before that. Weeding is the least we can do", she laughed at the young man's excitement, "Then, once the garden is in somewhat good shape, we can go hunt bugs. It's a promise."

"Yaaaay! I'm going to catch the biggest beetle ever!"

"I'm not going to lose", Granny grinned cheekily.

The pair chatted their future cleaning plans until it was time to re-open the shop for the evening.

They had decided to put the garden in shape the next day after which they would begin sorting out the cupboards. They were filled with all kinds of stuff and Granny needed to sort them out to make some space for new items.

Jyushi lend a helping hand during the second shift too. He tried watching the oven this time but ultimately failed, resulting in a patch of heavily burned bread and a laughing Granny.

He was sent back to chat with the customers and to take care of the orders.

He was getting the hang of the whole money changing operation and Granny was sure she'd be able to leave it to the young boy in a couple of weeks.

It was time for Jyushimatsu to return home for dinner, "Then, I'll be back tomorrow!"

"Wait a second", Granny told Jyushimatsu, halting him, "Here, I made you some bread to bring back to your brothers. I have also decided to give you the contents of the tip jar. The customers are giving the money to you as a thank you for your good job. I couldn't possibly have them."

Jyushi was beaming with excitement, "I bet they're delicious! I can't wait to see my brothers' faces when they taste them."

"Report me back how it went", Granny winked. She was happy someone appreciated her baked goods as much as Jyushimatsu did, "And use the money however you please. It's yours. You've earned it."

"Aye aye!" Jyushi told her as he made his leave, "See you tomorrow!"

"See you too, Jyushimatsu."

Jyushi came knocking to Granny's door a bit later this time. To be honest, she had been a bit worried despite having known the young man for only two days.

"I'm back!" Jyushimatsu cheered as he stepped into the vestibule.

Granny noticed he was carrying two large bags with something colorful in them, "Jyushimatsu, what are those?"

"I bought some flowers! They're for the garden."

"You didn't have to-", Granny began but was cut off.

"You told me I could do anything I wanted with the money. I wanted to make your garden bloom with pretty colors. I bet the bees will love it too."

"Thank you. Come on, in with you. We have a long day ahead of us", Granny told Jyushi flushed.

The morning was full of friendly smiles and smelled like freshly made baked goods. Jyushi greeted the regulars like he had known them for his whole life and got tackled by the dogs once again.

Unlike yesterday though, he gave the little girl an acorn he had found the other day. He told her it was his treasure and he'd like her to have it. She had smiled brightly and stashed the acorn deep inside her pocket. She had also given Jyushi a small wave before exiting the shop. Jyushi had returned the gesture.

After closing the shop for the afternoon the two got to work in the garden.

Granny had to actually tell Jyushi to slow down so that he wouldn't pull out anything else than weed. She had tried to explain him what to take out and what not but apparently the info had gone from one ear and out of the other.

When all of the weeding was done they mowed the lawn with a lawnmower they borrowed from a customer offering help. They did that together since Granny thought she didn't want Jyushi steering anything that could possibly cut him or someone else.

They enjoyed a glass of ice-cold lemonade and some cookies after their job was done.

Then it was time for the flowers.

Jyushi had bought some tomato seedlings to plant next to the wall. He said they'd taste way better than the ones you'd get in the shops. Granny told him she'd be making some delicious tomato bread later this year when the tomatoes would be ripe.

He had of course cheered and began telling what else he had bought.

All in all they ended up planting the tomato seedling, some sunflowers and an assortment of colorful flowers Jyushimatsu couldn't even name. He had bought them because of their colors.

They were covered in fresh soil and sweat but laughing all the same.

Jyushi had gotten his yellow hoodie dirty from the sleeves to the hood.

Granny had offered to laundry it while Jyushi would rest. Jyushi had taken the offer and now they were sitting in the living room looking at the results of their hard work.

"I really like the sunflowers, Jyushi. I hope they grow tall."

"I like them too! They look like the sun!" Jyushi cheered waving his hands around.

The cleaning of the cupboard would need to wait for another day. They had been busy with the garden the whole afternoon and it was soon the time to open the shop again.

"We better get ready for the customers", Granny told Jyushi who had been lying on the floor listening to some old story from her.

Jyushi sprung up, "Customers! Customers!" and ran to the shop.

The evening was uneventful not counting a surprise attack on Jyushi made by a group of kindergarten children. Jyushi was a kid magnet with his cheerful nature and bright smiles so it was no wonder he got attacked.

The next week was spent browsing through the cupboards. The reason it took so long was that every piece had a story behind it and there was an eager listener present.

"This is my bug catching net", Granny explained, "It has some holes there and there but I think it can be fixed with some tape."

"It looks old!"

"Of course it's old. I had it when I was ten", Granny snapped, "Would you look on that self over there. It should have my other bug catching stuff on it."

"This one?" Jyushi asked while balancing on top of a stool reaching for a self, "Found it!"

"Here", Granny began explaining once more, "is my cage for the bugs, a flashlight for hunting at night and my notebook."

"Notebook?"

"Look here", she made way so that Jyushi could crouch down and look, "Here's a list and pictures of all the bugs I've collected. I've even scribbled down some information on each one."

"Can I look?" Jyushi was beaming. The notebook was super cool.

Granny gave the notebook to Jyushi and began looking through a cardboard box. She listened to the random 'ooh's and 'aah's that could be heard. She smiled to herself remembering her own wonder when collecting the information into the notebook.

Jyushi was a great help around the shop. The people adored him. The regulars were sure to leave some loose change for him in the tip jar.

He would, in turn, either use the money for someone else or silently put it in the brothers' change jar. They used the money when playing Pachinko or going for drinks.

Granny had come to hold a special affection towards her little helper. He was the only one who would listen to her stories for hours on end and still want to ask questions about them.

He especially liked when Granny told him about her old hobby of hunting bugs but the other stories seemed to do the same trick.

Although Granny hadn't told him, Jyushi had noticed that she didn't have any family. It was the absence of family photos and other documents that got him to pay attention to the fact for the first time. He didn't ask about it. He thought it would've been a tough subject.

To be honest, Granny felt like she had had a glimpse of how it would have been like if she had ever married and gotten children. Just spending time with Jyushimatsu filled her heart with such joy and warmth. She could've even sworn she had even called him her son by mistake at some point.

The days continued on following the same old pattern. Jyushimatsu would be by Granny's door around eight o'clock in the morning. As always she'd be amused by his never ending enthusiasm and energy.

After Granny had offered Jyushi something to eat straight out of the oven the two would get the shop ready and work until afternoon. The regulars would come and go. The two would greet and chat with them, merrily as always.

After work they'd have a lovely chat while enjoying tea and pastries.

Granny would make sure to always have something new for Jyushi to try out. She'd bake pies, cookies, tarts and everything in between. She still hadn't found that one food Jyushi liked but he seemed to really like the pies she'd make.

By evening it would be time to open the shop again and greet all the customers returning from work.

They all looked gloomy when stepping in but they'd all leave with a smile on their face and a skip in their step. It was Granny's catchphrase and she made sure to accomplish it.

They had planned an outing the following week but Jyushi never showed up for work on Thursday. At that time she thought he simply had something else going on. Although they were talking about an outing with bug hunting.

He had told her he played baseball. Maybe he had a tournament that day and had simply forgotten to tell her about it.

She continued on but when there was no knocking on the door the following day either, she really got worried. One day was okay but two were her limit.

She was like a mother hen while she made her way through her apartment looking for Jyushi's address and phone number he had given her.

After calling the number written on the piece of paper several times throughout the day she decided to take action. She'd go and knock on Jyushi's door. The look on his face would really be something to see.

She slowly but surely made her way towards the Matsuno household on one quiet Saturday morning. She had a bag stacked full of all different kinds of pies for the boy.

Still at that point she thought he had gotten sick or something and that the goods would help to cheer him up.

She'd sit down and offer him the goods. Then they'd boil some tea and she would tell him stories just like any normal day. She would of course need to scold him too for scaring her like that but it would only be half-assed seeing there was really nothing to be mad about.

And that was how she got to the point where she is now. Drinking tea, not with his Jyushimatsu, but with his big brother Osomatsu who seems increasingly anxious in her company.

"So that was how we met", she finished her explanation and poured herself another cup of tea, "Where is Jyushimatsu? I haven't heard from him in three days."

Osomatsu flinched. How could he ever tell the sweet old lady what had happened to their brother.

"The thing is…ummm…", he began, "He was out buying food with our brother, Ichimatsu. Then there was this accident."

"Accident?" Granny was getting worried.

"So he is in a coma right now!" Osomatsu finished faster than he intended.

"Coma? How?"

"He got hit by a truck. He was trying to save a cat running over the street."

"Sounds like something he would do. Where is this hospital? I need to see your brother."

"It's Akatsuka. Ichimatsu is staying with him during the days. He's taking this all quite hard. Thinks it's his fault and all.

Granny stands up, "Then I'll be excusing myself. I have a patient to visit and a brother to lecture."

"Bu-But-", Osomatsu doesen't get to finish his sentence. Granny is already out of the door.

Ichimatsu was sitting by his brother's bed, like always, talking to about the animals at the shelter. Batter had joined the two once again. This time sitting on Ichi's lap purring away.

Suddenly the door opened with a slam. There was an old lady in the doorway.

"Matsuno Ichimatsu I presume?" she asks him.

Ichi can't help but answer, "Y-Yes?"

"Call me Granny. Your brother Jyushimatsu works for me."

"Huh?!"


	5. Chapter 5 The Truth is Out

"Huh?!" Ichimatsu cried out.

He was already surprised when an old lady showed up at Jyushi's hospital room's doorstep but that the brother in question also worked for her. It was simply unheard of.

"As you heard, your brother works for me. Please do close that mouth before something flies in it", Granny told Ichi and sat down on the edge of Jyushi's bed, "Poor little thing."

Ichimatsu gulped. This granny really was scary.

"D-Do you know my brother well?" he tried to begin a conversation.

"We've known each other for about a month, so I wouldn't say so. I am quite fond of him though. Don't you dare doubt that" she told Ichi calmly whilst smoothing down Jyushi's impressive bedhead.

"He's a bit loud at times isn't he?" Ichimatsu smiled fondly watching the two interact.

"I like that side of him. He's honest and kind. He isn't afraid to tell things either. He's not like all those lying adults I know."

ESP Kitty meowed at that. He, alongside Batter, had sneaked in with Ichimatsu. They liked to keep the two brothers company.

Granny glanced at the two animals, "Jyushi struck me as a dog person but I guess any animal does."

"He saved the black one. You can see how well that went, though", Ichi pointed out, "Jyushi calls him Batter. The name was meant to be baseball but I managed to change his mind."

"I can see, yes. He wouldn't have let that happen. He's just too nice for that", Granny stroked the black cat's fur when he jumped on her lap, "So your name is Batter? Such a nice name."

"He's a nice cat. Doesn't like to be held though."

"Can you keep cats in where you're living?" Granny asked, curious. The apartment hadn't seemed like one to house any pets.

"ESP Kitty is mostly outdoors. We aren't allowed to keep any animals. The landlord won't allow it", Ichi tsk'd.

"That really is a problem. Do you think Jyushi would like it if I took Batter in? I don't want him to get into any more trouble", Granny was talking about the cat and how he had almost gotten ran over, "I have a small apartment not too far from here. I live alone and get a bit lonely sometimes. Batter could keep me company when Jyushi isn't."

Ichimatsu looked at his sleeping brother, "I'm sure he'd say yes if he was awake. He doesn't want Batter to get into trouble either. Please do take good care of him."

"I will. I want to surprise Jyushi when he comes back to work once again. I think Batter wants to do that too."

A loud meow.

"He's going to be thrilled."

The two sat in silence once again. Without a topic there wasn't really much to talk about.

The nurse arrived later to perform the regular checkups and write the results down on her clipboard.

'There was nothing new', she had told them.

Ichimatsu was the one to break the depressing silence, "How did you two actually meet? Jyushi isn't one to approach people. He knows they usually find him funny."

"He helped me up when I fell. He continued to demand to carry my shopping bags afterwards."

"He can be quite demanding. Has gotten me to play baseball with him a couple times, too", Ichimatsu cracked a fond smile. He was a prime example of a proud big brother.

"I offered him something warm to drink after we had arrived to my place. It kind of escalated from that. I found out your brother loved my baked goods and he found out we both shared the same interests."

"As in?" Ichi inquired.

There was really nothing common in his little brother's interests. At least in the proportion he practiced them.

"Bug hunting. I am also a keen watcher of sports, especially baseball", she smirked, "My father was a player so I grew up watching him play."

She knew she didn't look like a person who would do either of those two things.

"No wonder he likes you so much."

"I like him too. He's like a son to me", she smiled sadly before she continued, "We had planned an outing for this week. We would've finally gone bug hunting together."

"We can do that after he wakes up. I'll tag along and so will the rest, too. Let's make it picnic or something. Jyushi will want to have a competition, so we'll hold one of those too", Ichi began plotting after hearing the duo's previous plans.

"I'd love that! I could bake tons of stuff for you to eat. I usually give Jyushi some to give to you but now I'd get to actually see your reactions."

Ichi's mouth hung open once again, "Wait a second. You bake the food Jyushi always brings us?"

"Yes. I have a bakery built into my house. Jyushi has been helping with that, too. He has a fanclub and all."

"I'd love to taste some", Ichimatsu actually bowed while saying that, "Your pastries are heavenly."

He had fallen in love with all of the treats his brother had been bringing home the past few weeks. The sweet ones were his favorite.

"Why thank you! The apple hasn't fallen that far from the tree. You're just as polite as your brothers" Granny blushed waving her hand in embarrassment.

Ichimatsu's cheeks got a red tint to them, "I-It's not like that. I just happened to have a sweet tooth that's all."

"Alright. I'll make sure you'll get enough to eat."

The two spoke together until the sun was beginning to shine its rays in from the window.

Ichimatsu stood up from the chair, "We better get going. Choromatsu is going to come today and he doesn't want to see me here when he arrives."

"Jyushi told me he's the bossy one but also that he does it all for your guys' sake. He probably wants you to go and get the sleep you need", Granny smiled as she stood up.

Ichi blushed. He didn't want to know what Jyushi had told Granny about him.

"He talks about us?"

Granny laughed at the young man's worried expression, "All the time. I can even tell you apart just by having listened to his stories."

"What do you know about me?"

"Not telling. How about you ask him yourself once he wakes up", Granny ginned mischievously.

She wanted to annoy Ichimatsu.

Of course Jyushi had told her nothing but good things about his brothers. Ichimatsu had probably gotten the most praise out of the five brothers. The others weren't that far behind though.

'I know he might look a little bit scary when you meet him for the first time. He can be a big masochist at times, too. But really, he's just a big softie. He had maaaaany friends. They're not human though. He has trouble talking to people, too, just like me', Granny remembered Jyushi once telling her.

"How about coming to my place for the day?" Granny suddenly asked, "It's nice and quiet there and it's closer to the hospital."

"I-If you insist", Ichimatsu said following behind her Batter and ESP Kitty hot on their heels.

Choromatsu arrived to the hospital in time to see his brother fleeing with an old lady.

He would have normally been more than suspicious but Osomatsu had told him the situation.

He smiled to himself as he stepped into the hospital room.

It was still too white to his liking but the flowers the brothers had been bringing every time they'd visit made it more tolerable.

Choromatsu changed the dried flowers to the sunflower he had brought with him. It reminded him of his brother. They both looked like the sun.

He sat next to the bed listening to the machines beeping.

It was a strange sound. Probably meant to sound reassuring yet managing to sound eerie at the same time.

"The doctor will be here shortly. We met in the hallway", Choro began talking, "Told me he'd be checking up on you in an hour or so."

Choro had also brought a fresh set of pajamas with him.

The brothers hated seeing their little sunshine in the hospital's white gown. They had made the nurses dress him in his usual pajamas from day one of his stay.

"Fresh from the laundry. I brought your jumpsuit, too, the dinosaur. Or was it a bird?"

Choromatsu sighed. It wasn't easy talking to someone who couldn't answer.

"I was really surprised when Osomatsu called me", he begun again, "I didn't believe him at first since he sounded like a madman but you really do have a job. I remember looking for one with you. I never would have thought you'd get one on your own and not tell your brothers about it. You remember what happened with Totty after doing that."

The third brother took the sleeping brother's hand to his own.

The one that wasn't broken. The broken hand was of course healing but would be out of use for some time.

His hand did hover on it for a good minute before he halted, "It must be itching like hell. The other hand is dry too. Wait a second. I think I have some lotion in my backpack. Let me get that."

The lotion was strawberry scented but Choro bet his brother wouldn't mind.

Choromatsu put the lotion on minding the plaster of the injured hand and the tubes on the other.

Jyushi wasn't wearing a breathing mask anymore. He had worn it for the first few days but was freed from it rather quickly. He did breathe on his own after all.

Choromatsu was actually glad all the unnecessary equipment had been removed. It made his brother look more normal. Like he was actually only sleeping and not in a coma.

"You'll wake up soon, won't you? We all miss you. The house is much quieter without you around. Ichi's not doing well either. He still blames himself for this all", Choro patted his brother's hand, "We've all been working hard for your return. Any treatment you need, we'll get it for you."

The doctor decided it was the appropriate time to open the sliding door and step in at that exact tender moment, "Why, hello. Visiting your brother?"

"Yes, we've decided to stay with him throughout this whole thing. It would be awful to wake up alone in a hospital room", Choromatsu smiled trying to look polite. Of course he was visiting. What did it look like?

"Actually, the swelling in Matsuno's brain has gone down significantly. If we're in luck he might wake up in a couple of days."

"Really? When can he come home?" Choro was getting excited. He had to tell everyone the good news.

"I want to keep him in here for a week after he wakes up. Just in case. To see if there's any complications or changes", the doctor told him, "That'll be everything for today. Have a good day."

Choromatsu waited until the doctor's footsteps faded away before pulling out his phone and speed dialing Osomatsu's number. He was sure to pick up and would tell the others too.

A sleepy voice answered, "Yes, Osomatsu speaking?"

"The doctor said that the swelling in Jyushi's brain had gone down so much that he could actually wake up in a few days!" Choromatsu cheered despite being fully aware that his brother hadn't realized who the caller was.

"H-Huh?! Choromatsu? What did you say?!" that got him awake.

"Jyushi might be waking up. I know it's soon but we're talking about Jyushi here."

Osomatsu chuckled, "Sounds like him. I'll call the others and let them know. We'll all come by in the evening. We'll talk about our next move then."

"Got that. I'll be waiting."

The rest of the brothers arrived later that day.

Ichi looked grumpier than usual upon arrival. Osomatsu had woken him up from a nap when he called him.

Choromatsu told them exactly what the doctor had said.

"He gave me the hospital bill. You're not going to like this", Choromatsu sighed pulling out slip of paper, "We'll never be able to pay for Jyushi's treatment if he's going to stay here for much longer. Just look at this."

Osomatsu snatched the bill and lifted it up to his face, "This much?! Is this stealing or what?! I mean we do have money but it's for the treatment afterwards not for the hospital bill."

"Didn't mother agree to pay for the hospital bill?" Karamatsu pondered playing with his sunglasses-

"I checked. She only promised to pay a certain amount", Todomatsu cut in, "I called her to ask about it. She sounded really sorry for not being able to do more for Jyushi. I don't blame her. I mean we are adults and we should've already moved out and all. Be independent you know."

"It's not her fault", Karamatsu admitted, "What are we going to do?"

Osomatsu nodded to himself before speaking up, "No Pachinko, eating out or drinking for the time being. It's a promise."

They all nodded in unison, "It's a promise. For Jyushi's sake."

"We'll have to cut down your snacks too" Ichimatsu whispered into ESP Kitty's ear.

The cat, too, agreed.


	6. Chapter 6: His Brothers' Keeper

After the initial cheer wore off the brothers were beginning to make their leave.

They would've all liked to just stay and keep company to their brother but they had work to do and money to earn.

Osomatsu voiced a question everyone had on the tip of their tongue, "So, who's going to be staying in for the night?"

"Leave it to me, brothers", Karamatsu broke the silence.

"You're the only one who hasn't stayed in yet. That'll work perfectly", Osomatsu concluded, "We'll be counting on you."

As the rest of the brothers were leaving, Ichimatsu was glued to his spot. There was no way he'd let Shittymatsu stay with his little brother.

"Come on, Ichi", Totty pleaded trying to drag him out of the room, "It's just for the night. You'll be able to see Jyushi when you come to stay in the morning. What's the worst that could happen?"

"That is the one thing I don't want to think about", Ichimatsu mumbled as he was dragged out of the room with the help of Osomatsu and Choromatsu.

Before leaving Ichimatsu stuck his head into the room once again, "If you do as much as touch him, you'll be dead. Keep those pants of yours away from him."

"Okay, okay, off we go!" Osomatsu sighed as he pulled his little brother off the hinges of the sliding door.

He could've sworn there was a sound of the door breaking when he pulled Ichi away.

"Don't worry, brothers. I'll take good care of Jyushi", Karamatsu tried to reassure them.

He ended up sounding even more suspicious.

To the point where Ichimatsu tried to struggle away from his brothers' grasp and return to Jyushi's side.

"He didn't have those stupid pants on him, did he?" Choromatsu whispered to Totty.

"I guess not, since it didn't hurt to stand next to him", he whispered back, "But who knows, maybe he has a pair in his bag."

They both gulped in unison.

Karamatsu would be so dead in the morning.

Karamatsu sat still for exactly two seconds before springing up.

"Is there anything you need, brother?" Karamatsu began, "A change of clothes? A bath?"

Jyushi of course didn't answer but it didn't mean Karamatsu took that as a negative answer.

"Silence means 'yes'. How about we go give you a bath and then get you a change of clothes? Sounds good? Great, let's do it."

It was easier said than done.

Karamatsu dragged his brother to the conjoined bathroom with the power of sheer determination alone.

He had actually asked the nurses if the maneuver was alright with his brother's current condition. They had told him he'd be alright if Karamatsu managed to keep his head still and not hit it anywhere. They had even provided him with a neck rest for the tub.

Jyushi was now sitting upright in the tub with the help of the neck rest whilst Karamatsu was rolling his sleeves up getting ready.

He had actually even taken his sunglasses off for the occasion meaning he was dead serious.

He was going to get his brother bathed and dressed even if it meant he had to go into the tub with him.

"You ready for this?" Karamatsu asked Jyushi, "I'll be careful."

"Let's begin by getting you some warm water for the bath", he twisted the knob carefully, "Got to learn how to operate this spaceship first. You can never be too careful with these. There, perfect."

"Then we add some bubbles" he poured in a generous amount of bubble bath solution, "It has sparkles in it."

Karamatsu poured a bucket of water onto his brother's head whilst shielding his eyes from the soap, "Got to get your hair wet first. Next up, scrubbing."

Karamatsu had to mind Jyushi's both hands.

The other one was wrapped in a huge plastic bag. Not to get the plaster wet. The one with the tubes was in a plastic glove for the same reason.

Soap and medical equipment didn't mix.

"Did they clean you up at all? I'm seeing some dry blood here", Karamatsu pointed out combing his hand through Jyushi's hair, "They manage to keep you alive yet they don't even take care of basic hygiene. I'll fill a complaint before leaving."

Karamatsu succeeded in his bathing mission.

His brother was clean and now it was time to pick out some fresh clothes.

"Hmmm, what are we feeling today? The basic pajamas? Jumpsuit? I have some pants for you if you want to try those on", Karamatsu rambled on, "The jumpsuit? Got that, brother. Just let me go get that."

"Here we go", he came back after a moment, "We need to dry you off a bit before dressing up though. Don't want you ending up with a cold or anything. I'll call a nurse in and ask her where the hair dryer is."

After having found out where the dryer was kept, Karamatsu began drying Jyushi's hair, "Gotta get it nice and dry. Let's comb it a bit, too. Make it look neat."

"There, all dry. Now, some lotion and then clothes", Karamatsu continued telling Jyushi his every move.

The clothes had been a pain to get on but they had somehow managed.

Now Jyushi was back in his bed after Karamatsu had changed the sheets.

"Fresh bed, fresh brother", he told Jyushi as he sat down on the hospital chair.

He took out his guitar he had had with him.

The other brothers hadn't noticed but he was prepared to spend the night keeping company to his little brother.

"How about a song?" Karamatsu ran his fingers over the strings making a random melody, "I've actually been composing a new song. It's a new piece for our duets. Let's hear it."

A delicate yet uplifting tune came from the guitar as Karamatsu began playing.

He wasn't sure how the nurses would react but to be honest he didn't care. He'd play for his brother if he wanted to.

"I bet Totty would be telling me to shut up saying it hurts", Karamatsu sighed frustrated, "I still don't know how I could hurt anyone. Am I just too perfect? A sinful man?"

He continued strumming the guitar, "Does this also mean you're strong? You've never told me I hurt you with my existence or the things I do."

Karamatsu also knew Jyushimatsu didn't cut him off on purpose. His attention span was really short. He also loved to ask questions, usually succeeding in cutting people off with them.

They were both also prone to injuring themselves. Jyushi would come home bruised and scraped from practice. Karamatsu would at least get stomped on by women in high heels after a failed flirting attempt.

"Like two peas in a pod", Karamatsu sighed.

He had entered his dreamland of good relationships with his brothers.

He took Jyushi's hand while hallucinating so the next thing he felt seemed like a part of that, too.

A twitch.

A miniscule twitch.

Jyushi's hand moved in Karamatsu's.

"Brother?" Karamatsu sounded panicked yet unbelievably happy, "Can you hear me? Can you do that once again? For me?"

Karamatsu pressed the nurse button so hard he thought it'd break.

The nurses came running.

"What is it? Is something wrong?" the nurse working in the night shift asked.

"His hand moved! It moved!" Karamatsu was screaming.

"Right, let's see", she said clearly not believing the man's words.

She wanted to see for herself.

Jyushi would need to move his hand once again.

"Jyushi, you need to move that hand one more time. Come on, you can do it", Karamatsu cheered.

A minute passed, then another.

The smallest of movements could be seen.

Jyushi's hand was moving once again.

Did this also mean he could hear what his brother was saying?

"I'll go tell the doctor. This is great news", the nurse told Karamatsu with a smile in her eyes.

The doctor came rushing in, "I heard the news. We'll need to run some tests."

"Right. Is he waking up?" Karamatsu nodded.

"Most likely. I'd give him two of three days", the doctor told him, "Inform your family. We'll be going now."

Karamatsu looked as his brother leaved the room pushed by the same nurse who had seen the hand move.

He took out his cellphone and dialed the first number in it, Choromatsu.

"Hello? Have you seen the clock lately, Karamatsu?" Choromatsu picked up.

"Jyushi is waking up! His hand moved! I felt it myself!"

"Wh-What? Did you talk with the doctor? Did you hit your head or something?"

"I talked with him! He's taking Jyushi to run some tests on him."

"I'll wake the others up", there was rustling of sheets heard in the background, "We'll be there."

The brothers arrived after calling in sick from work.

Osomatsu had been working but came with the others all the same.

When they opened the room's door, the doctor was back in the room with Jyushi.

"What's the situation?" Totty asked him.

"The swelling in Matsuno's brain has all gone down. To the point where he might actually even wake up today. Let's not get too positive, though."

"What do you mean 'let's not get too positive'? Of course we're getting positive!" Osomatsu screamed, "Our brother could be waking up today!"

"Okay, okay. I get it", the doctor told them, "I'll leave him in your care now."

The brothers glared at the doctor's retreating back.

How could he say such things?

"Hey, Shittymatsu. What's up with Jyushi's clothes?" Ichimatsu asked his brother.

Karamatsu puffed his chest looking really proud of himself, "I changed his clothes of course. After bathing him."

The rest of the brothers looked at each other, 'Yes, he's going to die.'

"You did what?" Ichi wasn't even shouting.

He was talking in a calm, quiet voice which only made things worse. It meant that he was really pissed off.

"Like I said-", Karamatsu couldn't finish his sentence.

He was hit to the face, hard.

"Don't do that again", Ichimatsu whispered to Karamatsu's ear before pulling away.

"Okay", Karamatsu chocked out, "I was just helping him. They didn't do a very good job with the cleaning."

Ichimatsu sat down on the chair Karamatsu had occupied just a moment ago. He shot a meaningful glance in Karamatsu's direction warning him once again.

"Talk about overprotective", Todomatsu whispered to Osomatsu, "He even checked to see if Jyushi's pants were normal. He's wearing a jumpsuit for god's sake!"

Osomatsu chuckled, "Wouldn't you be worried about the pants?"

"I would."

There was a sudden a rustle coming from the bed.

Ichimatsu shot up and took Jyushi's hand to his own, "Jyushi?! Jyushi, are you waking up?!"

The rest of the brothers swarmed around the bed encouraging their brother to open his eyes.

Jyushi's eyes moved under his eyelids and he shook his head a bit, "I-Ichi?"

His voice was raspy of course but there it was.

The small sound was enough to get the brothers' shoulders to relax.

Their little sunshine was waking up.

He cracked one eye open and closed it again.

The hospital room was too bright for his sensitive eyes.

"The switch", Ichimatsu commanded.

The room was dimmed.

"Come on, try again", Osomatsu told Jyushi with a pat to the knee.

He tried again. With more success this time.

Jyushi looked around for a while looking confused, "W-Where?"

"You're in the hospital, Jyushi. Ichimatsu can tell you the details later", Totty told him.

He was teary eyed after seeing his brother's eyes once again.

The lazy eye was incorrectly posed of course. It was to be expected.

He felt like telling him about it like before but decided to just let it be this time.

Choromatsu and Osomatsu were getting tears in their eyes too.

Karamatsu hid his behind sunglasses but they all knew the tears were there.

Ichimatsu was lying on top of his little brother, hugging his midsection and mumbling 'sorry's and other nonsense.

Choromatsu lifted the hospital bed to a better position so that Jyushi would be sitting up.

"Welcome back", he told Jyushi with a firm squeeze on the shoulder, "Say something to Ichi. He's getting melodramatic."

"Ichi, why are you crying?" Jyushi asked his brother after a glass of water for his sore throat, "Are you upset?"

"No, no I'm not", Ichimatsu sniffled, "I'm just happy you're awake. I'm so sorry for what happened."

"But it wasn't your fault", he mumbled, remembering nothing but hazy images of what happened.

His eyelids were drooping, "How is Batter? Is he alright?"

"He's doing great", Osomatsu butted in.

"That's good", Jyushi's head was beginning to sway.

He was going to fall asleep.

Choromatsu had read about comas and knew that Jyushi would be very sleepy for a few days despite just having woken up.

"Jyushi's very tired", Choromatsu pointed out, "Let's let him sleep. He needs it."

The others nodded as Choromatsu lowered the bed back down.

Ichi held his grip on Jyushi's hand determined to stay with him.

All of the brothers decide to crash in for the rest of the day.

They were all getting ready to settle in when Osomatsu suddenly spoke, "Hey, isn't there someone we should call?"

Ichimatsu was already dialing the number.


	7. Chapter 7: Memories

Granny wasn't sleeping, even though the clock's hand had moved over 12 far too many times.

She just couldn't sleep after hearing about the incident from Ichimatsu. The incident involving his precious little sunshine.

Like Granny had requested, Ichi left nothing out.

He told the whole story in gruesome detail despite having difficulties dealing with the situation himself.

She respected him and listened closely not to miss anything.

There had been a pregnant silence afterwards.

Neither of them knew what to say or how to react.

In the end it was Ichimatsu who moved first.

He stood up, moved to sit next to Granny and gave her a bashful hug to the side.

Granny returned the gesture with a sniffle.

They supported each other for a good ten minutes.

In the end they were both crying until Ichi fell asleep from exhaustion.

"Hello?" Granny answered the phone trying to sound like she had actually been sleeping prior to the call.

"Hello, it's Ichimatsu. Sorry to call you this late, but it's about Jyushi-" Ichi didn't get to finish his sentence.

"What about him? Did something happen?"

"Yes, but nothing bad. He woke up just now", Ichi explained with a strained voice. He wanted to cry.

"He did?" Ichi could hear Granny was fighting back the waterworks too.

"Mhm, he's sleeping now", Ichi told her, "We're all here to keep him company."

"That's good to hear. I'm sure he was happy to see you all."

"He was. As happy as he could've been in his situation. Would you like to come and see him tomorrow? I bet he's more awake by then."

"I'd love to. Will you be there?"

"I won't budge."

When Ichimatsu ended the call, the brothers were faced with yet another difficult situation.

Where were they all going to sleep?

In the hospital room there was a chair and a smaller than necessary sofa. There was nothing else you could possibly even dream of sleeping on.

"Rock, paper, scissors?" Osomatsu suggested.

The rest nodded and formed a circle.

In the end Osomatsu was crammed onto the sofa with Choromatsu, Totty got the chair, Karamatsu would be sleeping in the bath tub and Ichi was left to figure something out by himself.

"Okay, I'm shutting the lights", Totty told them before flicking the switch.

"Goodnight", they all wished each other.

"Hey…Hey!" Ichimatsu tried to voice his opinion on the fairness of the situation but was met with deaf ears.

"I'm not going to sleep on the floor, just for your information", Ichimatsu mumbled before quietly sliding to the foot of Jyushimatsu's hospital bed and curling there like a cat.

His brother didn't take the whole bed, so he had plenty of space.

Jyushi woke up before morning.

He was still a bit confused but more awake than before.

He could feel a lump on his bed, "W-What?"

After squinting in the darkness on the hospital room he could see his brother, Ichi, curled around his legs.

"Ichi? Are you sleeping in my bed?" he smiled.

He knew his brothers had been keeping him company.

Although all he could've seen was darkness in these past few days, there had always been a reassuring and familiar presence with him. He heard voices from time to time, too, telling him about some nostalgic or funny things.

He looked around the hospital room for the first time.

He could see the rest of his brothers scattered around the small room.

Osomatsu had pushed, correction punched, Choromatsu off the bed somewhere during the night. He was now sleeping on the floor.

Todomatsu was sleeping on the chair. His position would leave his neck sore in the morning.

After a good minute of searching, he saw one of Karamatsu's sequin pant covered legs dangling from the tub. The bathroom door was left open.

Jyushi's throat felt dry.

He had to get something to drink, which meant he had to wake one of his brothers up.

Feeling super guilty, he finally decided to poke Ichi's messy hair. It was the closest option, too.

"Yes?" Ichi mumbled half asleep wiping some drool off his cheek.

"Could I get some water?" Jyushi asked with a smile on his face. His brother looked silly.

"Jyushi?!" Ichimatsu stumbled and ended up falling from the bed, "You're awake?!"

"Are you still sleeping, Ichi?" Jyushi laughed after making sure the ruckus hadn't woken anyone.

"No, I was just surprised that's all," Ichi blushed, "Let me go get you that water."

Ichi returned with a glass and a pitcher full of water.

Jyushi pretended he didn't see how his brother turned on the bath's tap on his way back.

See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil.

"Here we go", Ichi poured the glass full, "Nice and cold."

He put a straw into the cup holding it up to his brother.

Jyushi lifted his hand to take it but was stopped, "No, don't use your hands. I'll hold it for you."

Ichi held the cup as Jyushi slowly sipped the cold drink.

"I'll get you juice next time", Ichi promised after they were done.

Jyushi cheered.

A low grumble cut through their conversation.

"You hungry?"

It was Jyushi's turn to blush, "K-Kinda."

Ichi crouched down to take something out of his cat-print backpack.

They were cookies he had been carrying with him in case of emergencies like this. Cat shaped, of course.

He fed some of the cookies to his brother making sure he drank enough liquids with them. They didn't want him to end up with an upset stomach on top of everything else.

"Hmm…These taste a bit familiar", Jyushi pondered with a mouth full of food.

Ichi smiled, Jyushi remembered the taste, "That's because Granny made them."

"Granny?! She met you?" Jyushi was surprised. It was supposed to be a secret.

"Well, she kind of arrived at our doorstep one morning demanding to see you. 'He hasn't come to work in two days! Something must be wrong!' she kept saying", Ichi explained, "Osomatsu almost wet his pants. She can be intimidating."

Jyushimatsu laughed, "Has she met the others?"

"She told me she had met Choromatsu when leaving the hospital but she hasn't seen the others, Totty and Karamatsu."

"She has to meet them, too", Jyushi demanded whilst letting out a yawn.

"I agree. But for now, it's off to bed with you", Ichimatsu pushed his brother back to his bed and pulled the covers up to his nose, "We'll be here when you wake up. Don't worry."

The morning came in a couple of hours.

Ichi had managed to somehow fall asleep once again. He was wrapped around Jyushi's legs drooling over his yellow dinosaur-chicken-cross jumper. Not that the owner of the legs would mind.

Ichimatsu seemed content when Osomatsu saw him in the morning.

Soon afterwards, there was a roar of rage coming from the bathroom.

"Good morning Karamatsu", Osomatsu cracked up when he saw his soaked brother, "Had an accident during the night?"

"Someone turned the water on!" he tried to explain whilst furiously drying his ruined pants with a hair dryer.

"What are you arguing about this early in the morning? Seriously, shut up", Todomatsu grumbled as he was woken up by the noise, "Aa-a, my neck hurts."

"My back hurts more! Eh? Where's Ichimatsu?" Choromatsu pointed out the obvious from the floor.

"Look from the bed", Osomatsu winked before smelling something funny, "Karamatsu! They're burning! The pants are burning!"

The two big brothers ended up doing a weird dance around the small fire.

In the end Totty poured a glass of water onto it and successfully extinguished it. He kicked the burnt pants for good measure, making sure they were really dead.

"My pants…", Karamatsu was twitching on the floor in despair.

Osomatsu was laughing his ass off to his brother's misfortune, of course, like a good big brother does.

"Why's Ichimatsu sleeping with Jyushi? Wasn't he supposed to sleep on the floor?" Todomatsu questioned his brother's position and began poking his exposed backside.

"C-Cold…", the fourth Matsuno mumbled as he turned his side to look who was poking him with ice-cold fingers.

"You were supposed to sleep on the floor. How come you're on Jyushi's bed, then?" Totty interviewed the culprit of the probable bed invasion.

"The floor's cold and Jyushi doesn't mind", Ichi yawned as he got up, "Oh right, Granny's coming today. In an hour probably. She really wants to see her sunshine up and awake."

"That's not the point!" Totty tried to argue but was interrupted by Choromatsu.

"How was she? Doesn't she need to look after her shop?"

"I told her that two of us could take care of the shop while she's gone. She baked all the goods early in the morning so there shouldn't be anything left to burn", Ichi explained calm and collected like it was common knowledge that two of the idiot brothers would need to count money and sell bread for a day.

Karamatsu had gotten over his misery by this and was eager to please a lady, "A bakery, huh? Leave it to me!"

Choromatsu sweat dropped, "Can you even do math? What's ten plus thirteen?"

"21", Karamatsu responded shining with confidence.

"Totally wrong", Osomatsu joined in, "Maybe I should come with you."

"I have experience", Totty remarked.

"That's true…" Choromatsu began pondering, "How about me and Totty take care of this shift? You two can take one later."

"What a downer", Osomatsu was disappointed. He would have liked to get a taste of Granny's pies again.

"Huh?" Karamatsu tried to voice his disappointment, too.

"Okay! Off we go! Say hello to Granny from us", Totty grabbed Choromatsu's hand and began dragging him away from the room, "And say good morning to Jyushi, too, once he wakes up."

Granny came, just as promised.

She had a huge pile paper bags and other containers with her.

Ichi knew right away.

They were filled with baked goods of all kinds.

Granny did say she wanted to see the brothers' reactions in person.

She was smiling as she made her way to sit down on the chair next to the bed.

Ichi nodded a quick hello and smiled bashfully.

"Hello, Ichi. You look terrible. Did you get enough sleep?" there she was with her hawk-like eyes. Nothing could get past her.

Ichi blushed even more, "I-I guess not. Jyushi woke up in the middle of the night, so I kept him company."

"Eeeeh?!" Osomatsu screamed, "He was awake? And you didn't think of waking us up?!"

"Not really. I though you needed the sleep."

"Ichi, you're so kind", Granny ruffled his hair, "I brought some of your favorite cookies with me. Want some?"

"Yes", Ichi's stomach grumbled.

"I want cookies, too!" Osomatsu notified loudly.

Karamatsu nodded in agreement.

Granny let out a laugh, "Of course. What would you like to have? I have all sorts of things with me."

She began unpacking her bags.

Out came pies, cookies, a whole cake topped with strawberries plus other pastries the brothers didn't even know the names of.

Ichimatsu watched the older brothers' faces with amusement. He knew Osomatsu had had a chance to taste Granny's baked goods before but his face was still full of awe.

Batter jumped from a basket Granny had with her and curled up with Jyushi on the bed.

Ichi was the only one who noticed.

The other two had only eyes for the pastries.

"Oh, it seems that Batter found his place already", Granny giggled, "And you two, don't drool over everything. Go boil some tea for us."

Karamatsu was out in a flash.

Osomatsu was clearly still pondering where he'd begin.

He eyed Ichi's cookies in a way which made him want to snatch them away. They were his cookies.

"Mmm-m?" the pile of blankets suddenly mumbled.

"Good morning, Jyushi. Slept well?" Ichi was by his side in a blink of an eye.

"Hmm? Yeah", he was just beginning to wake up and was groggy.

"Look who came to see you", Osomatsu smiled from the background.

Jyushi looked around him for a while, clearly a bit lost after having just woken up. Then he saw Granny and his face lit up.

"Granny?!" he looked down to his lap, "And Batter?!"

"Good morning sunshine. We came to see you right away after your brother called."

Batter pushed his head into Jyushi's hand he had lying on top of the blankets.

He purred happily and licked Jyushi's fingers.

Jyushi unsurely reached out and scratched behind Batter's ears. The reaction was instant, Batter leaned to the hand and let out happy chirps.

Ichimatsu watched his brother interact with the cat. He had been a bit afraid how he'd manage but seeing the cat's joy, he was reassured of Jyushi's skill.

Maybe it was in the family? The cat love.

"Batter really wanted to see you. He was pawing my face at four o'clock in the morning demanding we'd go already", Granny explained while she cut a piece of pie for Jyushi, "Not that I felt any different though."

Karamatsu came bursting into the room, "I got the tea. I hope you like it black."

"Thank you", Granny took the pot from the sparkling pile of pride, "Should we have some tea with that pie, Jyushi?"

"Of course!" he agreed loudly.

"Eat slowly though. We don't want you getting sick", Ichimatsu reminded while nibbling one of his cookies. Cat-shaped of course.

"Yes, yes!"

They were all laughing happily when the doctor came in to check on his patient's progress.

The happiness was contagious. He couldn't help but crack a smile, too.


	8. Chapter 8: Waking Up, Little by Little

"How's everything going here?" the doctor questioned as he stepped into the room, "I'm going to just remove the tubes from Matsuno's hand. I'll be off after that."

"Hey, hey! Do you want to have cake, too?" Jyushimatsu cheered merrily.

The more the merrier.

"No thank you. Now, please, give me your arm", the doctor tried to sound as professional as possible as he took out the tubes, "Be careful when using the arm though. It will be a bit sore for some time."

The doctor left quickly after that, just like he had said, and left the boys and Granny to enjoy their tea.

Ichi was blowing Jyushi's tea and making sure the younger brother didn't put too much sugar in it.

He had already put three cubes in and was trying to sneak in a fourth one.

Not that Ichi would admit but he himself had five in his. A sweet tooth.

"You can't have that much sugar Jyushi. It'll ruin your teeth and you already have a slice of pie", Osomatsu tried to help Ichi by scolding Jyushi, gently.

It seemed to turn Jyushi's attention elsewhere seeing he stopped playing with the cubes and took a spoon into his hand.

He began a relentless attack on the pie. He had really missed the taste.

"It's sooooo good!" he would squeal every now and then making Granny smile.

"I tried making apple pie this time. You seemed to really like it. Too bad it isn't the season for local apples yet."

"Can we go pick some when it is?" Jyushi asked her, "And hunt bugs?"

"Of course, but it's summer. You'd need to wait a long time for that."

Ichi spoke up having finished his cookies, "Actually, we were planning to have a little picnic after you're released from the hospital. We'd have a bug hunting competition and all."

"Really?!" Jyushi's eyes were sparkling and Osomatsu had to hold him down so that he wouldn't jump up and tackle Ichi and Granny into a hug.

"When you're well enough to go, that is", Granny tried to remind the overly excited ball of sunshine, "We can begin planning, though. What would you like to do?"

"Bug hunting!" he cheered, "And, and pies!"

"Of course. Anything else?" Granny smiled.

"Can everyone come?"

"We'd come even if you'd say no", Osomatsu pointed out, "It's gonna be a huge party!"

"Would you like to play baseball?" Ichi carefully asked, "A little though, your arm won't heal that fast."

"Of course! Granny can hit a homerun, too!"

"I don't know if I can…", she smiled awkwardly.

"Of course you can!"

Jyushi just then happened to notice his arm in its colorful cast. The brothers had all drawn something onto it.

He lifted it up to his face and inspected it.

Ichi was afraid of how he'd react. Depression? Disappointment?

"It's colorful", Jyushi finally said after a good five minutes, "What happened to it?"

"You don't remember?" Osomatsu asked, eyeing Ichimatsu worriedly.

"Nope!"

"You got hit by the truck, right?" Ichi began.

Jyushi nodded, he remembered that much.

"Well, it appears it hit you quite badly. That arm is broken and the muscles suffered some damage, too", Ichi continued, "The doctors say that you'll need physiotherapy if you want it to work like it used to."

"I don't have the money", gears were clearly turning in Jyushi's head as he thought of the situation, "Will I be able to play baseball?"

"No, not in a while. Sorry", Ichi mumbled as he noticed his brother's eyes were getting wet.

"But don't worry about the money! We brothers have been working hard for you!"

Granny took a jar out of her bag, "Exactly, don't you worry. These are from our customers. Just focus on getting better."

The jar read 'Jyushi's get well soon money'. Jyushi could tell it was his tip jar and that it wall filled to the brim.

"You'll be playing again in no time at all", Ichi reassured him with a pat to the head.

Batter also let out his opinion by meowing loudly. He totally agreed.

"I do hope those are happy tears", Granny put her hand on top of Jyushi's.

"Mm", Jyushi nodded and wiped the tears with his sleeves, "Thank you."

"You're welcome", all three of them said.

Jyushi fell asleep having exhausted himself with the crying.

Osomatsu and Ichimatsu continued chatting with Granny, who was telling them about her and Jyushi.

"-And then he brought in a bunch of butterflies letting them free in the middle of my living room! We spent the rest of the day trying to guide them out."

The two sweat dropped. Yeah, Jyushi was Jyushi after all. No matter where he was.

"But we had so much fun! Just like when we were planting the garden. Listen, when your brother came to my doorstep that day, he had a huge bag of flowers with him. He had bought them with his own money. His only motive had been that he thought they'd look pretty in my garden."

"Did they?" Osomatsu had to ask. He wasn't confident in his little brother's skills in choosing flowers.

"Of course! And they're still blooming beautifully."

"I can prove that", Ichi said. He had seen the flowerbed whilst staying with Granny, "The sunflowers were tall."

"They've grown really fast. Jyushi seems to really like them. They actually remind me of him."

The three continued their chat until Jyushi showed signs of waking up in the evening.

"Like I told you, you can't leave the bed yet!" Osomatsu was yelling at his brother when Totty and Choromatsu returned from Granny's shop. They had done one longer shift to make up for the evening's usual shift.

"What is going on?" Totty casually asked Ichi, who was smiling smugly next to the door frame.

"Jyushi is just feeling really well today. Says he wants to walk around."

Choromatsu sighed, "And you told him he can't since the doctor hasn't given the permission?"

"Of course."

"And now he's arguing with Osomatsu about it?"

"Seems like it."

"You're really enjoying this aren't you?" Totty noted.

"Of course", Ichi smiled, "Jyushi's doing great and Osomatsu is getting pissed off."

"Where's Granny?" Choromatsu asked trying to ignore the commotion.

"Left with Karamatsu, who just had to go escort her."

"Oh, okay", Choromatsu had had enough, "Stop it you two! Jyushi, back to bed. Osomatsu, grow up."

The room's volume dropped from over fifty to zero in one second.

"But I want to move…", Jyushi mumbled from the bed wiggling his toes under the blanket.

"The doctor will tell you when you can do that. Stay still or you won't be allowed to move at all. I'll personally strap you down to that bed if you do", Choromatsu tried to sound threatening.

Jyushi gulped and looked at Ichi pleading him to say something.

"Just listen to the big brother. You want to get better don't you?" he mumbled in an apologetic tone.

"Yes…"

Totty was bothered by the depressing atmosphere. Weren't they supposed to cheer Jyushi up, not depress him?

"Hey Jyushi! Look at these pictures I took when we were working!" he sat next to Jyushi on the bed, "Does this dog look familiar? He went crazy after smelling you on us."

Totty's smartphone was filled with pictures of pastries, flowers, bugs and dogs.

"That's Gladiator!" Jyushi told him pointing at the huge intimidating Rottweiler on the phone's screen, "He likes to lick my face and hug me!"

"We did notice that", Choromatsu mumbled as he brushed his dirtied pants.

"What about this one?" Totty continued giving the rest of the brothers a warning glare. No upsetting Jyushi today.

"That's Fifi, a Mastiff, and her friend Lola the Dachshund", he pointed at yet another picture, "And that's Bartholomew Roberts! He's a Chihuahua. I call him Mew Mew. He really likes to bite my fingers and bark at me."

Ichimatsu was kind of upset that his brother was friends with so many dogs. He'd have to tell ESP Kitty to keep his eyes open in case of overly friendly dogs recognizing Jyushi's smell on him.

"I do hope you know the names of your customers, too", Choromatsu sighed as the two continued on naming a Corgi and some other dogs.

While the brothers were trying their best not to get in Totty's way, the doctor was browsing through his record of patients.

Coming across Jyushmimatsu Matsuno's file he dialed the number written there.

It was his mother's number. It was there for emergencies.

The doctor lifted the receiver up to his ear listening to the beeping of the dial tone.

She finally picked up.

"Hello, it's the doctor here. I'm calling from Akatsuka Hospital to ask you some questions regarding your son's condition."

"No, no, he's doing just fine. You must have heard the good news from your other children. Yes, he woke up and is doing fine."

"I must ask you, has Jyushimatsu always been that active? It's not necessarily a bad thing but I was quite surprised to see him wanting to get up and move around after a day."

"I see. Since his teenage years? Do you know if something happened to him back then? Okay, I see."

"Okay, thank you. Bye."

The doctor went straight to the medicine cabinet and began digging through it.

"Here it is", he finally took out a bottle.

The label read 'Methamphetamine'.


	9. Chapter 9 Misdiagnosis

It was the next morning when the doctor decided it was the time to put his plan into action.

He opened the hospital room's door and stepped in like usual.

He took a blood test, blood pressure and other basic tests before giving Jyushi his daily medicine.

It was nothing special. Just a mix on painkillers and vitamins.

The only change was that today, there was one extra pill. One, teeny tiny white tablet was among the colorful assortment of pills on Jyushi's breakfast plate.

Jyushi didn't think much of it though as he had been getting a different set of medicine every day. There would be strong pain killers if he was in pain or mild ones if he wasn't. He had actually lost count how many pills he had gotten during his stay. They did their job, so there was no need to worry.

"I decided to try and give you a different pill today", the doctor explained as he took Jyushi's blood pressure, "So you might feel a bit funny for a while. It'll go away with time, don't worry."

Jyushi tilted his head. He didn't feel any different.

"Just finish your breakfast. We'll be doing another brain scan later today. And by the way, I think you could try moving around a bit today. Only a bit, don't overexcite yourself", the doctor said as he stood up and left.

It was the time of the day where one brother had left and the other was coming. Jyushi was alone in his hospital room.

He decided to try and walk to a rocking chair a nurse had brought for his brothers during their last stay.

He stood up carefully and when nothing bad happened he took his first step.

Then another.

And the third.

In the end Jyushi was safely next to chair and sitting down.

He felt satisfied. He couldn't wait to see Ichimatsu's face when he came to see him.

Just then the sliding door was opened and Ichi stood by the door.

He came in not noticing anything wrong. Finally after sitting down and looking at the bed he panicked. There was no Jyushimatsu on the bed.

Ichi looked around and spotted Jyushi sitting in the rocking chair with a killer grin plastered onto his face,

"Look who's moving around", Ichi smiled as he made his way to his brother's side. He was relieved to see his little brother moving around.

"The doctor said I could move around a bit. It's better than lying down all day."

"Yes it is. But please, next time you decide to go all Olympic sports on me, please do it when I'm around."

"Okay! Promise."

"Good", just now Ichi noticed the beads of sweat on his brother's brow, "Is something wrong? You're sweating."

"Ah? No, everything's alright", Jyushi told Ichi as he carefully stood up and walked back to his bed, "But I think I'd like to lie down a bit."

"Are you feeling tired?"

"No, just a bit dizzy", as to prove the point Jyushi almost fell down on his way.

Luckily, Ichi was there to catch him in time, guiding him to the bed, "You should really lie down. Your face is looking kinda pale. Is everything really alright? Should I call the doctor?"

"No, no, the doctor said this could happen. He put me on some new medication."

"What kind?"

"I don't know. Didn't bother to ask", Jyushi replied sounding tired.

Sometimes Ichimatsu really hated how careless his little brother was, "I'll make sure to ask him later. Would you like some water?"

"Yeah, thanks", Jyushi mumbled as he took the glass from Ichi.

He got to drink one gulp of it before it all came back up.

Jyushi was puking his guts out onto the bed.

Ichimatsu was more than panicked, "Jyushi?! Is everything alright?!"

Jyushi continued for a good minute even after Ichi had gone to get a bucket for him.

In the end he looked pale, sweaty and beyond exhausted.

"I think I'll really just lie down now. I'm not feeling too good", Jyushi told his brother in a weak voice.

"Should I call the nurse?" Ichi was already pressing the call button.

The nurse came running but after checking Jyushi she concluded that it was a side effect of one of his medicine. 'Probably the strong pain meds we have him on right now. They're known to cause nausea', she told them apologetic. There was really nothing to be done but to wait.

Ichimatsu was anxious.

His brother was sweating a lot and currently curled on his side. It looked like he was in pain but Ichi couldn't do a thing to help.

Then the twitching and muscle spasms began.

Ichimatsu had texted Choromatsu and told him the symptoms in hopes that he knew something. He was the nerd of the group after all.

Granny was also informed. She told Ichi she'd be there after her shift had ended.

"Ichi, I my toes feel cold", Jyushi suddenly whined.

It wasn't like him at all to whine and got Ichi to take action.

He fetched a towel and a bucket of cold water determined to wipe the sweat off his brother's face. After that he fetched some extra socks for the feet.

"Anything else? Does something hurt?" he nervously asked.

"My stomach hurts", Jyushi whispered holding the said body part with both hands.

Ichi quickly fetched a warm towel and laid it on top of his little brother's aching belly.

"Better?"

"A bit", Jyushi's voice was raspy. His throat was clearly dry.

"The nurse brought you dinner. Do you think you could try eating something?" Ichi tried to encourage Jyushi to eat a bit. He must be starving after throwing up his breakfast, "At least the miso soup. Here, have some."

But Jyushi turned his face away from the offered food.

"I don't want it."

"Why? Are you not hungry?"

"It'd just come back up again."

Jyushi was uncharacteristically quiet and pessimistic. It got Ichi even more worried.

Just what were the doctors giving their brother? There had never been side effects like these before.

"Would you at least drink some water? We need to keep you hydrated."

No answer.

"Choromatsu and Osomatsu said they'd be here shortly", Ichimatsu tried to get Jyushi's mind off the pain he was so obviously in, "They told that Granny had called them. Roared to the receiver about how the shop had been a mess when she had arrived back home. There was flour everywhere it seems, even though no baking was involved."

"Hm-m", Jyushi hummed.

"Are you sleepy?" what Ichi wanted to hear was a vocal reply.

A shake of the head. 'No'

Osomatsu could have sworn Ichimatsu had aged ten years in a matter of few hours. He looked dead when Osomatsu arrived alongside Choromatsu two hours after the text message.

He was desperately wiping off sweat from Jyushi's forehead whilst also trying to stroke some heat to his pale-looking fingers.

Jyushi himself was twitching and moaning in pain. His eyes were shut tight and the grip on his big brother's arms was bone crushing.

"How is he?" Choromatsu carefully asked as he took the towel and resumed the task of sweat wiping in his brother's stead.

"Looks really bad", Osomatsu observed as he walked to the bed, "He hasn't been eating?"

Ichimatsu sighed in exhaustion. He had clearly been working non-stop for these past two to three hours. The dark bags under his eyes were more prominent than ever and his posture was really bad.

"No, doesn't want to risk it. The appetite isn't there either."

"Any drinking?"

"Not really. Too afraid to do that, too", Ichimatsu informed the brothers in a deflated tone, "His toes were cold before but now it's the fingers, too. The sweating won't stop. The nurses don't have anything that could help. They told to just wait for it so subside."

"Sounds really bad", Osomatsu mumbled in thought, "We'll switch places. You go get some rest. I and Flappymatsu will take care of the little sunshine for a while."

"Hey!" Choromatsu tsk'd but nodded, "We'll handle it."

"Try talking to him", Ichimatsu mumbled tiredly as he sat to the rocking chair after bringing it next to the hospital bed.

Jyushimatsu had finally managed to dose off when Granny arrived with the rest of the brothers.

Ichi didn't know if it was from sheer exhaustion or if the pain had finally subsided enough to manage sleep but Jyushi was finally sleeping and that was enough for him.

Granny was by Jyushi's bedside in an instant.

"Look at your pretty face. It's all messy", she took the towel and gently began cleaning the face, "What did they feed you. Poor little thing."

She continued the pet talk until the doctor arrived.

Six of the seven occupants of the room stood up and faced the doctor head on as he stepped into the room.

"Good evening. I heard that there were some problems."

Granny huffed, furious, "Some problems?! I've been getting messages saying my poor little boy has been sweating, cold and in pain the whole morning! The problem is with you young man! What did you give him? The other medicines have never had such side effects."

The brothers nodded, agreeing with everything Granny had said.

Beads of cold sweat appeared of the doctor's brow.

"I-It was a test of some sorts. I had a little diagnosis you see, about Matsuno here…" he began.

"A diagnosis?" Totty butted in. He looked about ready to go online and ruin the poor man's personal life.

"After observing how active you brother was after just having woken up from a coma I called your mother and asked her about his behavior. She told me Jyushimatsu had been like that ever since he was a teenager. So I came to a conclusion."

"And what was that?" Karamatsu was taking off his leather jacket and sunglasses cracking his knuckles a couple of times.

"ADHD, or Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder."

"You're kidding me!" Choromatsu screamed, "He does display some of the characteristics of it but your diagnosis is simply wrong!"

Ichimatsu was radiating a deathly aura staring at the doctor.

"What do you mean I misdiagnosed him? He doesn't have a stable job, has never been able to get one, he has difficulty socializing with people and he had random spurts of energy. Do I need to tell you anything else?" the doctor was beginning to get a bit cocky.

"He has a job! In fact he's had it for months now. He's great with customers and they love him. I love how enthusiastic he is about everything and how he always has the energy for it all. And I absolutely hate how you've reduced him into what he is today. He doesn't deserve this!" Granny screamed, furious. Her little sunshine wasn't like that.

"What did you even give him?" Osomatsu finally asked the question on everyone's tongues.

"Methamphetamine", was the doctor's simple reply.

There was a long silence.

"You gave him what?!" Choromatsu was the first one who got his mouth to work again, "Methamphetamine is a drug! You're doing more damage than good!"

"Calm down. They've used it for years in the US to treat ADHD with great results. I'm just following their footsteps."

"It doesn't change the fact that it's wrong!" Osomatsu raged.

The doctor smiled, "Then, try and stop me. I'm his doctor."

He left the room leaving the five brothers and Granny staring at his back.

If spontaneous human combustion was a thing the sheer intensity of the stares would have ignited the poor man in seconds.

"The war is fucking on."


	10. Chapter 10: The Aftermath

Jyushi woke up to the ruckus his brothers and Granny were making.

He was still feeling quite terrible but at least the muscle spasms had apparently subsided.

"Water", he whined trying to free himself from the relentless hold of the sweaty covers. The brothers hadn't had the chance to change them before Jyushi fell asleep.

"Jyushi!" the brothers exclaimed. They felt guilty for waking him up with their chatter but they were just too furious to be quiet.

Granny offered him a glass of cold water and helped him take careful sips. Jyushi was clearly still on alert for possible vomiting. The way he shook also told how weak he must have felt.

While Jyushi was enjoying his refreshment, Karamatsu took the dirty sheets to be washed. Choromatsu changed the sheets to new ones.

Jyushi was carried to sit down on the rocking chair for this process.

Ichimatsu covered his legs with a blanket fearing they were still feeling cold.

"Do you feel like trying to eat something?" Granny carefully asked Jyushi who had finished the class of water, "A nurse brought some crackers, salted. They said we'd need to get you to eat or they'll have to put you on a drip."

"I-I could try, a bit", Jyushi smiled unsurely. He wanted to be strong, for Granny's sake.

Jyushi managed to eat two and a half small crackers before he shook his head, 'No more, sorry.'

Ichi smiled reassuringly, "You'll eat some more when you feel up to it."

Totty had been preparing a bath for his big brother. Now he emerged from the bathroom with a fresh set of towels.

"Would you like to have a bath, Jyushi? I bet you feel kinda dirty", he asked his brother taking out a clean outfit for Jyushi. The chicken-dragon jumpsuit would need a serious wash.

"I'll help", Karamatsu offered lifting Jyushi up bridal style and carrying him to the tub, "We'll be right back."

After the door had closed behind the three, the rest of the room shared a serious glance.

"We need to form a plan", Osomatsu began, "Jyushi won't be taking a second pill of that drug. I wish he hadn't taken the first one but there's nothing we can do about it now."

The rest nodded. They totally agreed.

The doctor and his ambiguous plans had to be stopped, once and for all.

"Choromatsu!" Osomatsu pointed at his younger brother, "You search some useful information."

"Already on it", was the reply from behind a laptop screen, "You can count on me."

"Granny! You take care of our sunshine. Make sure he feels loved and safe."

"Who do you think I am?" she huffed, certain of her abilities.

"And Ichimatsu! You calm the fuck down! We need a plan. I know you want to go and strangle that guy right here and now and I'm also aware that you could totally do it. We need you here with Jyushi and for that you need to stay calm."

"I'll try my best", Ichimatsu mumbled. He knew his big brother meant good. He had been on full alert ever since Jyushi's symptoms began in the morning.

"I'll talk to mom and hear what she has to say. A doctor would need a family member's consent to begin medication on someone incapable of making their own decisions. I bet the doctor has somehow managed to 'get our mother's' on this. There is no way mom would agree though and that's what I'm going to find out", Osomatsu let his brothers know before retreating to the hallway to make the call.

The only sound left after the oldest brother had left the room was the tapping of the laptop's keyboard.

Totty and Karamatsu returned with Jyushi after about ten minutes. They had had to make the bathing quick since Jyushi had begun feeling sick once in the warm water.

"There we go! All spick-and-span!" Karamatsu cheered as he guided Jyushi back to his bed and lied him down.

Jyushi was smiling. He was clearly feeling a bit better already. He had the Matsuno's usual pajamas on. They were super comfortable and therefore perfect for the occasion.

Granny sat on the edge of the bed and took out a couple of books from her bag.

"Would you like to read with me?" she asked showing the title of the book to Jyushi.

One was a book about bugs. Another one was about baseball.

"Yes!" Jyushi snuggled to Granny's side staring intensely at the books on her lap.

The brothers looked at the pair on the bed a smile on their lips.

"This is actually used to be my father's book. Look, he made notes on the pages about different techniques and poses", Granny began.

She was glad to see Jyushi cheerful once again. It seemed like the drugs never even happened.

They got to flip through the book for half an hour before Jyushi's tremors returned.

The sweating was back, too.

They laid Jyushi down on the bed and sat down around it to comfort him.

"S-Sorry", Jyushi whispered shaking. There was sweat on his forehead.

"There's no need to apologize. It's not your fault", Ichi tried to reassure his little brother.

Jyushi hid his face under the blanket, "But he said it's all because I'm jobless and can't talk to people properly."

He had been awake to hear what the doctor had told the brothers. The brothers were getting furious once again.

"You're working for me, aren't you? You talk with the customers really well, too", Granny's voice took a scolding tune, "Don't you even try to blame yourself for this."

Choromatsu had told them that this was all a side effect of the drug. Still, depression, suicidal thoughts and mood swings just didn't sound right with their brother.

"Okay", Jyushi mumbled a weak reply from under the mountain of blankets.

Osomatsu was calling their mother.

He had told her everything he knew.

About the drugs, the doctor and the suffering their brother was going through.

After that he asked her if she had given the doctor the permission to give Jyushi the drug.

The answer was a definite no. She had never heard about any new medication. Only about the pain medication and that had been clearly mentioned. They had even explained all of the possible side effects of all of them.

Osomatsu asked if he could call her again so that the authorities could hear her side of the story.

"Of course. Go get that doctor", was the reply. She sounded just as pissed off as everyone else. The mother's rage was the worst. Osomatsu knew. She was after blood.

"Got that!" Osomatsu saluted before ending the call.

They now had the proof that there had never been consent from any relative to administer the drugs to their brother.

Choromatsu had sent him a message a bit earlier telling him that Jyushi's doctor had no authority to give him the ADHD diagnosis, either. He had looked it all up from the hospital's database. The doctor was no psychiatrist.

Osomatsu cracked a sinister smile.

They were one step closer to saving their precious little brother.

As he opened the hospital room, he was faced with the scene of absolute horror.

Their brother was having yet another fit. After they had all thought they were over.

Osomatsu sighed in frustration as he walked to the bed, "Don't worry, Jyushi. Just a little bit longer."

"You got the information?" Choromatsu asked from behind the laptop. He was probably collecting evidence.

"Of course. All of it."


	11. Chapter 11 If It's War You Want

Ichimatsu chose to stay with his little brother whilst the rest went to Jyushi's doctor's office. He wasn't sure if he could control himself enough not to jump and strangle the doctor after seeing him.

Ichi stayed behind also partly to make sure they wouldn't have any trouble with the police when they'd accuse the brothers of murder. They had enough trouble already.

He had already told ESP Kitty not to talk to their tiger friend at the local Zoo. Bringing a full-grown male tiger in a hospital would most definitely cause more harm than good. Ichimatsu was almost certain the tiger would come if asked. He had done it before, so why not now.

Let's just say Ichi considered it as their plan B for now.

Jyushi was doing better than before but was still hiding under the blankets. He had made a cocoon to himself and wasn't planning on showing his face for the time being.

Ichi couldn't say he had been ready for what his brother was doing but he had a secret plan to get his brother out of his cave.

"There was a letter in our mailbox yesterday. Choromatsu brought it to me since I asked him to", Ichimatsu told his brother pulling a cute-looking envelope out of his trouser pocket, "Do you want to know who it's from?"

The pile of blankets moved ever so slightly. Ichi knew his little brother was facing him now, listening closely.

"The handwriting is way too girly and loopy but I can tell it's from Homura."

That clearly got Jyushi's attention as his nose poked out from under the blankets, "Did you open it? What does it say?"

"Of course I didn't. It's a letter addressed to you. I would never read it without your permission", not that Ichi was going to mention it but the rest of the brothers would totally have read the letter.

"Can you read it aloud?"

"If you want to", Ichi told his brother as he carefully opened the envelope making sure not to harm it, "Here I go."

"Hello Jyushimatsu. How are you doing?

Is the weather good in there? I hope it doesn't rain much.

Are you still playing baseball? Have you managed to throw 80 meters already? I remember you were practicing your throw before.

As I told you, I moved back in with my parents. Unlike I had anticipated, they closed me into their warm embrace when I arrived at their doorstep late at night. I thought they would have at least asked me why I had returned but they didn't. They just sat me down and we ate dinner together like we used to.

I'm sure you gave me the courage I needed for my return.

I was doing pretty badly when we met for the first time as you must have noticed. I didn't believe in myself or anything I did and all of my plans seemed to crumble.

I thought I had no future at the time. But after meeting you, I felt like I could smile again.

I began studying really hard and got into the university I wanted. I currently study psychology and sociology.

My wish is to someday be able to help other girls like the me you met on the beach that day.

I'm going to be strong and continue smiling.

I won't cry. There's no need for that now.

I'm still thinking about your confession. It was raining quite hard that day, wasn't it?

The answer would still be negative I'm afraid. I'm not ready for that kind of commitment right now and won't be in a very long time.

I'm sorry. I hope you understand.

Love, Homura

PS. I still have the wrist band you gave me. It's my lucky charm."

Ichi finished reading the letter after which he took out a ribbon that had been in the envelope with the letter.

It was bright yellow in color and quite long.

Attached to it was a note.

'And this is my lucky charm to you. Wear it with a smile.'

The ribbon had clearly been worn before as it was slightly crumpled up. It must have belonged to a pair of ribbons the other of which must still be with Homura.

"Give me your hand", Ichi told his brother.

A pale hand emerged. It felt slightly damp as Ichi tied the ribbon to the wrist.

"Happy tears", came a weak whisper from within the blanket fort.

"Of course", Ichi agreed, "She's grown strong."

"Mhm", Jyushi nodded in agreement.

At least Ichi thought the movement of the sheets indicated a nod.

The two were back to a comfortable silence.

This time though, Jyushi's hand was in his big brother's decorated with the bright yellow ribbon tied carefully into a bow.

Osomatsu alongside Todomatsu and Granny were marching to the doctor's office. Choromatsu and Karamatsu were both missing.

Choromatsu had searched up the location, too, so there was no possibility of the group bursting into the wrong office. They'd go straight for the kill.

Osomatsu had almost taken Jyushi's baseball bat with him but decided that his brother could do that himself if he felt like it. Instead, he had a recording with him. A recording of their mother's words saying she had never agreed to anything. It was their ultimate weapon.

Totty had his phone ready. The doctor's social life would be ruined. He also had a hidden mic with him to record anything the man had to say for himself. Not that he'd get any mercy though.

Granny wasn't armed in any way. She didn't need anything to protect her little sunshine with. Her pure rage alone would be enough. Batter had been ready to come along, too, but had to stay home since cats weren't really allowed into the hospital.

They decided to at least knock.

Hard.

It was more like pounding to be honest.

The doctor opened the door looking quite doubtful.

So it wasn't normal to nearly break someone's door when knocking on it? Apparently not.

"Yes?" the doctor asked with a fake smile.

Osomatsu stepped up. It was hard trying to look intimidating when you were a head shorter to your opponent.

He managed it somehow and cleared his throat, "We're here to discuss about some minor details relating to our brother's current condition. May we come in?"

"Of course", there was a layer of sweat forming on the man's forehead.

"Thank you", Osomatsu smiled as the trio stepped in.

"Please, do sit down", the doctor directed them to sit down on a sofa located next to his office table.

The trio sat down all smiling, seemingly cheerful. In reality they were boiling with rage and trying their best to control themselves.

"And what did you want to talk to me about? Your brother's treatment? I believe I called your mother and got the necessary permission to everything."

"About that", Osomatsu began as he dug a phone from a pocket of his hoodie, "I have a recording here from when I called our mother and asked about your so called permission."

The oldest brother pressed a button playing the record to the occupants of the room.

The message of it was as clear as day, no permission, no approval. Not now, not ever.

"Well?" Totty was getting impatient. There was nothing to badmouth about when the man wasn't saying anything.

"I did honestly think your mother gave me the thumbs up for this", the doctor was getting nervous, "The diagnosis is fitting! He needs the treatment if he wants to live a normal life!"

"He is living a normal life!" Granny actually stood up and slammed her hands onto the table with a slam.

"Do you have any proof?" the doctor was seriously pissing the two brothers off but they believed in Granny. She'd roast him.

Granny took a paper out of her purse, "Here we have a letter of reference. It's Jyushimatsu Matsuno's and made by me. He works for me and I can say he's doing really well."

The doctor took the paper and skimmed through it, "It's official?"

"Of course it is! I just need Jyushi's signature to make it perfect."

"Very well."

Todomatsu wasn't having any of this, "'Very well'? Is that all you have to say?! Have you seen our brother after you gave him that drug?! He's looking miserable!"

Osomatsu took his little brother's hand to prevent him from attacking the doctor.

"The side effects are said to be quite bad. They'll subside."

"The hell they will!" Totty raged on, "He's sweating, shaking, feeling cold and has no appetite! Which part of that is normal?!"

Osomatsu again, agreed but was still holding Todomatsu down. Like an owner holding the leash of a furious guard dog.

Just before Osomatsu felt like letting his little brother go and rip the man's throat open, the door opened and Choromatsu stepped in.

He didn't come alone. Behind him were a group of police officers.

"Sorry I'm late. I went to pick up some backup", Choromatsu greeted the group.

Osomatsu almost cheered his brother for looking so damn cool. Almost.

He was shining with confidence as he stepped into the room and straight to the doctor's desk.

He slammed down a pile of papers and beckoned the officers to step forward, "Here's the man. Do search his medicine cabinet. I believe you'll find some illegal substances there which he has used to treat our brother."

The officers nodded and went to the so said cabinet.

As the officers were opening the door the doctor jumped from behind his desk and tried to stop them.

"Stop! Do you have any authorization? You can't just go and search through a doctor's medicine storage."

A grim-faced officer pulled a paper from his jacket pocket and showed it to the distressed man with a grunt.

"They have a search warrant. It's no use hiding it now", Choromatsu pointed out when sitting down next to Osomatsu who gave him a high five.

"We got a bottle of Methamphetamine here", an officer spoke up bringing a labeled bottle to the police chief who dropped it into an evidence bag.

"Would you like to come with us to the station", the chief finally spoke up after inspecting the item in the bag.

Two officers handcuffed the doctor and took him out of the room.

The officer nodded to the brothers and Granny before exiting the room with his officers.

"Wow Choromatsu, just wow", Todomatsu huffed, "Now that was cool."

Choromatsu grinned sheepishly, "I decided to call us some backup. Not that you two couldn't have done it."

"Well done", Osomatsu gave a thumbs up.

Granny gave Choromatsu a big hug crying onto his shoulder, "Thank you."

Totty spoke up ruining the tender moment, "By the way, where's Karamatsu?"

The three brothers looked at each other and shrugged. No idea.

"Let's go see Ichi and Jyushi. Tell them the good news", Osomatsu dismissed the whole thing with a wave.

When the four entered the hospital room they found out where the second brother had been.

Karamatsu had apparently actually been in great terms with the hospital's staff. There was a new doctor and Jyushi's nurse in the room.

"Hmph, good job brothers", Karamatsu praised them as they stepped into the room, "I spoke with the rest of the hospital's doctors and told them what happened."

"How?" Totty questioned quietly.

A curly-haired young male doctor stepped forward, "Hello, I'll be taking care of your brother from now on. I'm a children's doctor but they assigned me to this job. I hope you don't mind."

Osomatsu was already liking this doctor, "Of course not. Jyushi doesn't like doctors. I bet you have the skills to change that."

"I'll see what I can do", the doctor reassured him. He knew Osomatsu was referring to Jyushi as a difficult patient. And those, he could handle.

"He can be a bit childish at times", Choromatsu tried to explain the situation a bit more clearly, "He hates getting shots, for example."

"I bet I've worked with much worse."

"Excuse me, doctor", Ichimatsu tried to get the doctors attention by pointing at the bed.

Or to be more specific, the lump on the bed which hadn't moved at all during the past half an hour.

"A bad day?" the doctor whispered to Ichimatsu who only nodded.

As the doctor sat down on the chair next to the hospital bed, he noticed a trail of crumbles leading to a small opening in the cocoon.

A hand came out and snatched a cracker from a plate placed on the bed.

"Would you like something to drink, too?" the doctor asked in an amused tone, "Those look a bit dry."

A head appeared.

Besides the obviously disheveled hair Jyushi also had some impressive bags under his eyes.

He stared the new face in childish curiosity before snatching a glass of water from the bedside table.

"I'm your new doctor. The old one is… Well, occupied with something else", the young doctor explained, "I'm here to check your vitals. Nothing else today."

The mountain of blankets shifted and a figure emerged.

Well, almost, the blankets were still hanging on Jyushi's shoulders like a cape.

He extended a hand for the doctor.

"We'll begin with the blood pressure then", he was glad that the patient was cooperative, "It's a bit low today. It can be because you've been in bed the whole day."

The rest of the brothers were pleased with the new doctor.

The explanations were sure to get their brother to feel safe.

"Have you been having any fits today? Shaking? Coldness of the feet? Excessive sweating?"

It almost seemed like Jyushi was thinking before answering, "Cold."

"Where?" the doctor asked to which the answer came in a form of a foot sticking from inside the blankets.

"But not the fingers?"

A shake. Not anymore. At least not today.

"Okay. I'll be back by tomorrow morning to check your blood pressure. We'll also take a blood sample", the doctor explained, "Alright, we'll see you tomorrow."

The doctor left with a last wave from the door. The nurse followed close behind after giving Jyushi a tray of food. Simple porridge for now.

Jyushi lifted a spoonful of porridge to his mouth but was stopped by Ichi.

"It's hot. Be careful", he took the spoon and blew onto it.

The rest of the brothers sat down around the bed enjoying their victory.

Granny sat on the sofa looking proud of her little sunshine and his brothers.


	12. Chapter 12: The Check-Up

The following day, the doctor was due to do a full physical to Jyushi to make sure he was doing fine after the ingesting the drug.

Naturally, Jyushi, along with his brothers, was a bit jumpy when the time of the check-up came. The old doctor, although now arrested, had left his mark on them.

The new doctor managed to calm the brothers down by informing them that they could accompany Jyushimatsu to the room and stay with him throughout the whole procedure.

"Please, sit down on the chair over there", the doctor told Jyushi as he arrived, "The others may sit down on the rest of the chairs. I'm sorry I don't have enough of them. My room is only ready for one or two escorts."

Osomatsu only laughed as they got ready for a round of rock paper scissors, "We're used to it. Don't worry."

Three of the brothers got to sit, the other two had to stand.

The doctor fixed his glasses onto his nose and typed something into the computer on his desk, "So, Jyushimatsu, how have you been doing these past few days? I heard that you haven't eaten that much."

Jyushi was feeling a bit uncomfortable. He didn't like it that his brothers were there to listen to everything he had to say. He didn't want to make them worry.

"U-Um", he began.

"Do you want your brothers to leave the room? It's all up to you whether you want them here or not", the doctor explained warming up his stethoscope with his hands.

Jyushi was having an inner debate. If he was honest and told the doctor he didn't want his brothers in the room during the check-up, they'd get even more worried and he'd need to explain them everything that happened in the room. If he lied and told the doctor the brothers could stay, they would be reassured that he was doing better.

"They can stay", Jyushi finally told the doctor.

"Alright, that's great to hear", the doctor smiled, "Now, could you lift your shirt up a bit so that I can listen to your heart?"

The heart rate was up once again because of the drug. Otherwise the heart sounded perfectly healthy. No extra noise or irregularities.

"Okay, good. Now the blood pressure", the doctor carefully lifted Jyushi's sleeve up so that he could place the device in its place.

After a minute of feeling an uncomfortable pressure in his arm, Jyushi was freed from the apparatus. He decided he still didn't like having his blood pressure taken.

"Your heart rate and blood pressure are both a bit elevated today but that is simply because of the medicine given to you earlier. They should return to normal with time", the doctor deliberately chose not to use the word 'drug' seeing how negative the word's effects were on the brothers.

Jyushi nodded despite not knowing what it meant to have a 'high blood pressure' in the first place. The other brothers seemed to be fully aware of the word's meaning and nodded in agreement.

"Then I'd like to check some other basic things, like your ears, mouth and your sight. I'd also like to measure your height and take your weight. Just normal things, nothing special", the doctor continued on as he took the next tool.

The ears were looking good, the sight was all right, too, and he was growing normally. The mouth looked normal. Methamphetamine is known for destroying the mouth but the dose had been too small for that to happen this time.

When the results for the weight came, the doctor stopped for a bit.

Although the weight wasn't too low, Jyushimatsu had had muscle mass to raise the number. Now, the weight was in the normal range, which meant that he had lost quite a lot of weight.

"Are you still feeling icky in your stomach?" the doctor asked.

"Hmh", Jyushi hummed swinging his legs.

A nervous tic.

Ichi could tell his little brother was picking at his cuticles, too. He'd have to look at them later.

"Would you like to get something to ease that feeling? We have some medicine that might help."

Jyushi shook his head. No new meds.

"What if I explained what it does? I can tell you what it has in it, too", the doctor tried.

"T-Then, maybe", Jyushi mumbled blushing. His brothers were watching.

The doctor took his time explaining everything the medicine did and did not do. He answered any questions Jyushi would have and read the 'possible side effects' part aloud.

"Would you like to try it?" the doctor repeated his question.

A nod and a slight smile. The patient was loosening up a bit.

The rest of the brothers let out a breath they didn't know they had been holding.

"Alright, I guess we're done here", the doctor said clapping his hands together, "Do you have any questions?"

Jyushi fidgeted on the chair for a good minute before speaking up, "When can I go home?"

Some of the brothers cracked a small smile at that. Jyushi must be feeling homesick already.

"Hmmm... If you manage to begin eating normally I'd say three days", the doctor winked.

He wanted to get the patient motivated to reach his goal of eating normally once again.

It worked, "Three days?"

"Yep! We'll need to change the cast on your hand before that. The current one is a bit too stiff for you", the doctor explained, "Well, we'll see again tomorrow."

"Thank you, doctor", the brothers bowed as they left the room.

Granny had decided to stay in the hospital room. She was feeling tired after the adrenaline had gone down.

She'd need to return home tonight.

When the brothers arrived, she stood up waiting to hear the news. Osomatsu gave her the thumbs up after which she let out a heavy sigh and sat back down. Finally, good things were happening.

Karamatsu had gone to get Jyushi some hospital food to eat since he had told him he was ready to try eating something. He'd have to bear with some basic soup for now.

Ichimatsu was feeding Jyushi once again, sitting on the edge of the bed and blowing onto the spoon before guiding it into his little brother's mouth.

"Is it good?" he asked carefully.

"Hmh!" Jyushi smiled opening his mouth for another spoonful.

"Jyushi", Granny began and when Jyushi turned his head to her direction she continued, "I need to go back home. My old bones aren't taking all this too well."

Jyushi knew she had some trouble with her back and the sudden rush of excitement and action must have only made it worse.

He agreed with a nod, "Yeah, maybe you should. I bet the customers are waiting for you to come back, too."

"I guess they are", Granny smiled, "Can't leave them waiting, can I?"

"Nope. I'll come and help when I can", Jyushi smiled back.

"Take your time. It's not like the bread won't sell itself."

Granny gave Jyushi one last hug before leaving. She knew she wouldn't be able to come back for a week or two. Her back was killing her.

"I'll go and check up on her in the mornings after my shift", Karamatsu reassured his little brother, "She'll be just fine."

"Of course she'll be", Ichimatsu tsked.

"Yeah, she's the iron lady", Osomatsu smiled, "The iron lady with the best baked goods ever."

Jyushi laughed at the nickname but was grateful to Karamatsu. Of course he knew she'd be alright on her own. Making sure would only reassure him even more.

The brothers only now realized how tired they all were.

The excitement and adrenaline of the day had faded and been replaced with fatigue.

Jyushi was the first one down and was soon followed by Ichi, who fell asleep on the chair, spoon in hand.

The rest was, again, left with rock paper scissors.

This time the rocking chair brought salvation to the two who would have otherwise slept together on the sofa.

Todomatsu got the sofa, Choromatsu the rocking chair and Osomatsu the other chair after lifting the previous occupant onto the bed with Jyushi.

Karamatsu got the bathtub. Much to his dislike.

"Okay, good night everyone", Totty wished his brothers before shutting the lights.

The words turned to deaf ears.


	13. Chapter 13: Home-Sickness

An annoying jingle woke Todomatsu up.

A phone? Who's?

A husky voice came from the bathroom, "Yes, Karamatsu speaking."

Karamatsu's ringtone? No wonder it had hurt his ears.

"No, no, I'm sorry. No, it's nothing serious, just a cold. I'll be back by tonight."

Totty smirked.

"Yes, yes, thank you. See you", Karamatsu sighed stretching his sore muscles as he emerged from the bathtub.

"Oooooh! You're in trouble aren't you? Wasn't that your boss?" Totty teased him.

"I forgot to call sick from work yesterday. He called to make sure I was alright."

"Bummer. Should have fired you."

"What's with the noise? It's too early", Choromatsu mumbled as he tried to fake up his feet which had fallen asleep.

"It's twelve o'clock", Karamatsu pointed out whilst fixing his hair.

"Eeeeeeh?!" Choromatsu stopped what he was doing and took out his phone, "You're right."

Osomatsu woke up, kinda, "What? Breakfast?"

"It's twelve o'clock, so that would be lunch", Totty pointed out, "But no."

"Ah, okay", Osomatsu yawned, turned around onto his other side and fell back to sleep.

Choromatsu and Todomatsu sweat dropped. Osomatsu may didn't have any cool talents but he surely could sleep. The brothers gave him that.

"Jyushi isn't up yet", Totty giggled as he looked at the pair on the bed.

Jyushimatsu was, as usual, sleeping in the weirdest position ever and Ichimatsu was hugging his little brother's middle mumbling in his sleep. The pair looked absolutely adorable.

So adorable that Totty took a picture.

'For blackmailing', he had said.

Jyushi woke up to the phone's flash, "W-What? Ichi?"

And Ichimatsu of course woke up to his brother's voice, "Huh?"

The two drooling brothers with disheveled hair looked around the room, looking confused.

Jyushi couldn't remember when he fell asleep while Ichi was certain he had fallen asleep on a chair, not a bed.

"Good morning", Choro told them.

"Morning", the two mumbled in unison. Adorable.

Totty brushed his hand through Jyushi's hair trying to tame it, "Would you like to have a bath? Karamatsu is getting us something to eat before lunch. We have some time before he comes back."

"Aye", Jyushi mumbled blinking his eyes, "Ichimatsu needs one, too."

"He can take one on his own", his brother simply stated taking Jyushi's hand and escorting him to the bathroom.

Choromatsu went in to help.

"Wha…?" Ichimatsu was left to wonder, "Osomatsu?"

Osomatsu having fallen asleep after conquering the sofa turned to face his younger brother, "Yes?"

"Do I stink?"

Osomatsu thought for a while, "Hmmmmm…."

"Osomatsu?"

"Yes?"

"'Yes' what?"

"You stink", Osomatsu concluded, "But I think we all stink. I mean when did we even bathe ourselves the last time?"

Ichimatsu needed to actually try remembering that, "Last week? Maybe."

The two brothers shared a silence, "Ewwww."

"Guess we need to take one today", Osomatsu mumbled.

"Yeah."

"So you've been wearing those same clothes for a week now?"

"Yeah?"

"Gross."

Jyushi was dressed in his denim overalls and yellow dress shirt after they were done with the bath.

Ichimatsu silently sneaked into the bathroom when the three were finished.

Osomatsu was laughing of course.

Ichimatsu really was sensitive to what other people said.

"What's with Ichi today?" Choromatsu asked as he watched the purple lightning flash past him.

"Jyushi told him he reeked", Osomatsu cracked up, "You should have seen his face when I told him the same thing."

"Not cool, Osomatsu", Totty sighed.

The room's door was suddenly slammed open.

Karamatsu was done with his shopping and returned with two bags full of food.

"I couldn't decide, so I took it all", he told his brothers as he took his sunglasses off to polish them, "Where's Ichimatsu?"

"He's having a shower", Totty told him as he began going through the bags, "Wait a sec. This bread looks familiar…"

Choromatsu joined Totty, "True. I've seen it somewhere before…"

"Granny's bread!" Jyushi cheered as he saw the buns.

That got Osomatsu up, "What?! Gimme!"

"Calm down, brothers. There's enough for everyone", Karamatsu tried to calm the situation down by snatching his big brother's hoodie by its collar, "You, too. Let Jyushi have some first."

Osomatsu sniffled as he watched his little brothers pick out their breakfast, "My breaaaaad."

"I told you there's enough for everyone", Karamatsu told his brother again, "Show some restrain."

"Karamatsu! This one must be for you!" Jyushi cheered loudly holding up a huge bread bun, "It has sunglasses on!"

Totty couldn't believe what his brother was saying, "What? Let me see. Ew!"

Yes, it was a big bread bun decorated with sunglasses made of poppy seeds.

Karamatsu was visibly sparkling with excitement, "Come here, my son! You're perfect!"

Osomatsu couldn't even laugh at that. Too creepy.

Ichimatsu came back to the room only to witness Karamatsu dancing around the room.

"Maybe the shower was too hot", he closed the door to try again.

He tried again after a minute.

When Karamatsu was still dancing he gave up and decided that his brother was just a lunatic.

"Ichi got cookies!" Jyushi threw the bag at Ichimatsu as he joined them around the bag of food, "The buns have paw prints in them, too!"

Ichimatsu took one to his hands, "Cute."

"Hmh! And good, too!" Osomatsu cheered mouth full of bread.

Choromatsu agreed with a nod, chewing a bun of his own. It was shaped like the Matsuno family symbol on the brothers' usual hoodies.

Totty was taking pretty pictures and posting them on the internet. His followers were sure to have watery mouths after seeing them.

"#wishyouwerehere, #cutebread, #brotime", he mumbled as he tagged his photos.

The doctor came to do his very late morning check-up on Jyushi when the six brothers were munching on the desserts. A pie and some cookies.

He had come in during the usual morning hours, too, but decided not to disturb the slumbering brothers.

"Good morning! Can I have some? Looks delicious", he smiled as he made his way to the room.

Jyushi of course took the compliment as a serious question and offered the man a slice of pie, "Of course!"

The doctor accepted the pie with an awkward smile, "Thank you. I'll enjoy this a little later with some coffee."

"Okay!" Jyushi smiled.

After the check-up the doctor sat down.

"I have some good news for you brothers", he began, "I've been talking with the other doctors and we decided that you can go home tonight."

The brothers' eyes grew huge in disbelief, "Really?!"

"I personally believe that you would benefit from it. A familiar environment is the best for healing."

Choromatsu nodded at that. He was glad the doctor had noticed and taken into consideration the anxiety Jyushimatsu was showing in the doctor's office the other day.

"We can go change the cast right away, so that you can get to packing and getting ready to leave", the doctor suggested.

"Alright", Jyushi agreed and stuffed the rest of his pie slice into his mouth.

He looked like a chipmunk.

The doctor smiled, "Follow me. It won't take long."

Jyushi returned, as the doctor had said, in no time.

The new cast was lighter than the previous one, the main purpose of which had been to keep the hand secure while the owner was in a coma. Now that the patient could tell if the hand hurt or not, there was no need for such a sturdy cast.

Todomatsu was running his hand over the new cast, frowning, "We need to decorate this one, too."

Jyushi watched as his little brother took out a pen and began doodling.

"A labybug!" he cheered.

"Yep! Does it look any good? I've never drawn one before", Totty asked concerned.

"Looks just like one! Draw a beetle next!" Jyushi clapped his hands.

"Hey! Stay still!"

The rest of the brothers got their turns in decorating the cast, too.

Choromatsu drew flowers and stars. He wasn't too good at drawing and wanted to do something simple.

Osomatsu drew smiley faces.

Karamatsu drew a detailed picture of a baseball and a bat, so that Jyushi would always have them with him even if he wasn't currently able to play.

Ichimatsu drew a picture of Batter and some paw prints.

"So cool!" Jyushi told them as he admired the final result.

Totty smiled. His brother was almost back to his cheerful self.

"Ah, right!" Choromatsu suddenly seemed to remember something, "We need to return to work today!"

"True", Totty admitted sheepishly, "I've been telling my boss I'm sick the whole time. I bet he's beginning to doubt me."

Karamatsu agreed, "My boss called me in the morning. Told me they need me back there."

"And we need the money…" Osomatsu mumbled.

"Totty! You can't lie to your boss!" Jyushi scolded him with a pout, "Go back to work and tell your boss you're sorry."

Todomatsu blushed, "O-Okay."

"Karamatsu and Choromatsu, too!"

The two brothers gulped, "Yes!"

"What about you? Are you feeling alright to come home tonight?" Osomatsu tried to remind him of the reason they had skipped work in the first place.

"I am! And Ichi is here to help me", he simply told them.

Ichimatsu blushed. He wasn't used to being shown this much trust.

"Okay, okay, we got it. You're worried about us", Totty sighed, "We'll return to work, okay? But we'll be back by the evening to take you back home."

Choromatsu and Todomatsu left to work.

Karamatsu would work in the night shift tonight. He went home to clean up the place for Jyushi's return.

Osomatsu stayed where he was.

"Aren't you going to work?" Ichimatsu asked the oldest brother.

Osomatsu flinched, "Y-Yes I am! I have the night shift, remember?"

"Okay."

"I guess I'll go and help Karamatsu", Osomatsu told them as he left the room, too.

Ichimatsu had gone to pick up ESP Kitty to help them.

Of course he didn't know how to fold clothes or pack bags but he was a great therapy animal.

Ichimatsu could tell his brother was a little anxious about his return. The cat would have a job to do today.

Jyushimatsu and Ichimatsu sat down on the floor taking out all of the clothes the younger brother had with him in the hospital.

Ichimatsu folded the clothes and gave them to Jyushi who put them in a bag.

ESP Kitty sat on Jyushi's lap, purring away.

Ichi had read from science article that a cat's purring could actually lower stress levels and blood pressure.

A perfect therapy animal.

"We need to pack the laundry to a different bag", Ichi pointed out as he folded the jumpsuit Jyushi had been wearing when he had had his worst fits.

Jyushi took out another bag the brothers had brought him earlier that week, "Here?"

"Yeah, put them in there."

In the end, the two brothers were left with two big bags of clothes.

Jyushi had gotten really tired halfway through, so Ichimatsu finished the packing on his own.

Jyushi was lying on the floor with ESP Kitty when Ichi was finished with his work.

"The bed is way more comfortable, you know. Let's get you there. Then you can sleep", Ichi poked his brother trying to coax him awake.

"Hmm…", Jyushi mumbled but complied to his brother's request.

ESP Kitty jumped up to sleep on Jyushi as soon as he had gotten the covers pulled up on himself.

To be honest, Ichi was also feeling a bit sleepy. He wasn't used to doing much work after all.

When the doctor came alongside the rest of the sixtruplets, they were met with Jyushi, awake on the hospital bed patting Ichi's hair as he slept.

"We packed everything up", Jyushi informed them as they walked in.

"These?" Karamatsu took the two huge bags to carry them, "They're heavy! How many clothes did you guys pack?"

"Dunno. Fell asleep."

The doctor stepped up to do the final little check-up.

He took a blood sample, the blood pressure and listened to the heart beat once more.

He also checked how the new cast was working and cracked a smile when he saw the drawings on it. It seemed to work just fine. The material didn't irritate the skin or cause any other trouble.

"The cast is okay. You blood pressure is still a bit high and we'll need to see the final results of the blood sample to tell how everything is but I think it's safe to say you're free to go home", the doctor told Jyushi as he scribbled some notes, "I do want you to come back here though. I need to monitor your progress. During the first week once a day. After that we can decide depending on the situation."

"Okay!" Jyushi agreed.

"We'll make sure he takes his medication and eats well", Choromatsu reassured the doctor, "We'll also try the exercises you've shown us. For the muscles."

The doctor had shown the brothers a simple list of stretches and other moves Jyushi could begin doing. He had been confined to a bed for quite some time and his muscles were sure to be sore, not only the broken arm.

"That's good to hear. Well, you're free to go", the doctor smiled clapping his hands together, a habit of his, "I'll go get the paperwork for you to fill."

Jyushi was more than eager to go home. He was sitting on the bed swinging his legs back and forth humming some unknown tune to himself.

"Should I call a taxi?" Karamatsu asked Osomatsu.

"Maybe. Do we have the money?" he replied.

"I wanna walk!" Jyushimatsu disagreed with the idea, "I wanna walk home!"

"You've been bedridden for many days. Are you sure you can walk?" Choromatsu sighed, there was no way they were going to win this.

"Yes!"

Ichimatsu put his hand on Choromatsu's shoulder, "Better do as he says."

"Yeah."

As the brothers were leaving the hospital, a nurse came and gave them the necessary paperwork.

She told Jyushi to get well soon, hugged him and gave Karamatsu a playful wink.

She gave him a note.

It had a phone number in it.

Karamatsu, of course, was taken by surprise, "K-Karamatsu girls!"

Todomatsu sighed in disbelief, "No way."

"A nurse in my ward so wanted me to give you his number", the nurse smiled, "I bet you made quite an impression on him. Great job back there. You looked cool."

She was referring to Karamatsu talking with the doctors about Jyushi's mistreatment.

'Karamatsu boys' the rest of the brothers laughed.

"Good for you, Karamatsu!" Jyushi patted him to the back, "Are you going to call him?"

Jyushi of course didn't realize the irony of the situation. He was just simply happy that his brother had gotten an admirer.

Karamatsu blushed, "O-Of course. He's a fan after all."

The six brothers began their journey home. It wasn't a long one but Jyushi hadn't moved much in the past week so his muscles were sore.

They walked slowly but surely as the sun began to set.

Karamatsu was carrying the bags.

Choromatsu was eyeing the paperwork showing some details to Osomatsu once a while who nodded or hummed in reply.

The road where Jyushi had gotten ran over happened to be by the route they were taking.

Ichi was nervously sweating as they were getting closer and closer to the scene of the accident. He wasn't sure if his brother could remember what had happened but he sure didn't want to be reminded of it.

Then they were suddenly right there.

The road was clean of course but Ichi could still see the blood in his mind.

There was no reaction from Jyushimatsu. He did stop to look at Ichimatsu, who was fidgeting nervously.

"Is everything okay, Ichi?" he asked tilting his head.

"Y-Yeah, everything's alright", Ichi whispered.

The rest of the brothers were watching the interaction between them in silence. They didn't know what had happened in here but they were sure it had been terrifying to watch.

Jyushi took Ichi's hand and began walking, "Let's go home!"

"Okay", Ichi agreed. He was relieved his brother didn't remember.

"Home sweet home!" Osomatsu cheered as he opened their house's door with his keys.

Jyushi nodded in agreement.

The house was a mess.

An absolute mess.

"Didn't you guys say you'd clean up in here?" Choromatsu growled, "It looks ever dirtier than before!"

Totty took a picture of the chaos, "True."

Ichi was worried that the mess would hinder Jyushi's movement around the house.

But when Jyushi voiced his own opinion on the situation, the brothers were reassured he'd be just fine, "Wow! It's really messy in here!"

"Yeah", Osomatsu laughed, "Better get to cleaning, huh?"

"Yeah!" Jyushi yawned, "Cleaning!"

The brothers smiled at their brother's enthusiasm but there was no way he'd be cleaning anything today. The only thing he'd go was go to sleep.

They all went in to hug their brother, "Welcome home, Jyushi!"

"I'm home!" Jyushi laughed hugging his brothers back.


	14. Chapter 14: Welcome Home

As the brothers were taking the futon out for them to sleep on, a problem emerged.

Were they going to let Jyushi sleep on the futon with them or was he going to have to sleep on the sofa?

Would the brothers be able to notice Jyushi having a fit if he was sleeping with them?

The brothers moved around quite a lot themselves, so noticing something like that would be difficult.

But wouldn't sleeping on the sofa have the same result?

Once again, the brother in question figured out the answer, "I want to sleep on the futon!"

And the brothers were defenseless against Jyushi's wishes. If he wanted something, he'd get it.

So the arrangements were made.

The brothers slept like usual except that ESP Kitty slept next to Jyushi's head and would alert its owner if something happened.

Ichimatsu had said that he could simply sleep next to his little brother but the request was denied.

To be honest all of the brothers would've liked to sleep next to Jyushi to make sure he was alright.

Choromatsu did try to reassure Ichi saying he was a very light sleeper. If something was wrong with Jyushi he'd wake up.

"Okay, I'm shutting the lights", Todomatsu told them, "Good night, don't let the bedbugs bite."

"Bedbugs?"

"It's a saying, Jyushi", Choromatsu told him as he helped his brother get under the blankets, "No one is going to bite you. Just go to sleep."

"If you're feeling scared, should I sing you a lullaby", Karamatsu tried.

"Good night!" Jyushi wished his brothers when he was finally tucked in.

"Good night!" came the reply.

"Huh?"

When Ichimatsu woke up to the sound of their alarm clock's loud beeping, he came to the realization that his little brother had slept through the whole night with no trouble at all.

ESP Kitty meowed his good mornings from next to Jyushi's head and continued grooming the brother's hair.

"Good morning. Slept well?"

Another meow.

"Hmmm?" Jyushi mumbled half-awake, "What's that noise? Is it an earthquake?"

"ESP Kitty is just purring", Ichi told him as he watched his brother turn to look at the feline who in turn licked his nose.

"Good morning, Kitty!"

Another lick to the nose and more purring.

"We better go downstairs. The others are already eating breakfast", Ichi informed Jyushi.

'Breakfast' was a synonym for 'an all-out war' in the Matsuno's family. Every man was left to fend for themselves to soothe one's hunger. If you came late, the chances were that you didn't have any food to eat left on the table.

The war was even more serious now that the parents were on a vacation. There was no one to cook enough food for all of them.

It had been Choromatsu turn to cook, so the food was sure to be something straight out of a cookbook.

It would be devoured in a second. It was sure to be good food and the brothers were even better in not wasting it.

Jyushi seemed to understand what his brother was implying. He got out of the bed and somewhat cleaned in record time considering the cast was in the way of everything.

Jyushi ran down the stairs, much to Ichi's dislike.

"Food!" the morning sunshine screamed as he made his way to the kitchen, "Food! Food! Food!"

Totty and Choromatsu had apparently already left as Karamatsu and Osomatsu were the only ones to greet them.

Well, neither of them really greeted them. They looked dead on their feet.

"Karamatsu, did you go to work?" Ichimatsu asked his brother. He couldn't really get mad at someone who looked like he was ready to fall asleep on the bowl of miso soup in front of them.

"Yeah, the boss needed me", Karamatsu told Ichi with a huge yawn.

Jyushi patted his big brother's head, "You better go to sleep."

Karamatsu nodded in agreement, "Okay, I'll just finish my breakfast."

"Osomatsu, is there anything left for us?" Ichimatsu asked the oldest who was lying on the floor looking content.

"Choromatsu saved you two some. Said he put it in the fridge", Osomatsu mumbled, "Be grateful. I could've eaten more."

"Of course you could. Pig."

"Hey!"

"Jyushi, I'll warm up your food, so just sit down. It'll be ready in a bit", Ichimatsu totally ignored his offended brother on the floor.

"Okay!" Jyushi sang and sat down with his two big brothers.

Jyushi had prevented Karamatsu from faceplanting into his dish a total of five times by the time Ichimatsu returned with their breakfast.

Osomatsu had fetched a comic and was reading it on the floor looking at their food longingly.

Ichimatsu took out a plate that had been left to them with a note reading 'Jyushi's meds, take them with food'.

"Choromatsu left these for you. Do you want to explain what they are?"

Jyushimatsu trusted his brothers and took the pills without any hesitation.

Karamatsu finally managed to finish his food. Ichimatsu wasn't going to mention it, but half of it had ended up on the pajamas of the second brother.

"Off to bed," he told the three as he rose from the floor and went upstairs.

"Good night!" Jyushi told him, "Good night…But it's not nighttime now… Good day?"¨

Jyushi had a philosopher hidden in him.

"Let's just go with 'Good night'", Ichimatsu told his brother.

He was sure Jyushi would've otherwise chewed over the choice of words for the rest of the day.

"Okay! Good night!"

"Thanks", Karamatsu yawned form the top of the staircase.

After the two late risers had finished their breakfast, some of which had ended up in the mouth of their big brother, it was time to tell Jyushimatsu the new rules of the household.

The brothers had come up with them during last night when Jyushi had already fallen asleep.

"So, Jyushi, we need to establish some new rules", Osomatsu began. He had insisted on telling them to Jyushi 'since he was the oldest' and all.

"These are just for your safety. You can tell us if you don't agree with them", Ichimatsu whispered to his little brother.

"Rule number one!" Osomatsu lifted a finger up in illustration, "You're not allowed to go to the bathroom alone at night. Wake one of us up if you have to go and he'll go with you."

"Eeh?" Jyushi did see the point in the rule but Osomatsu still managed to make it sound creepy, "I'm not a kid!"

Osomatsu ignored the comment, "Rule number two! You're hereby prohibited the access to our kitchen."

"Why?" What if he needed a glass of water?

"Sharp objects and fits don't mix!"

"Aah", well, he did have a point.

"Rule number three!" Osomatsu continued on.

"There's more?!"

"We will be the ones giving you your medicine, namely Choromatsu, me and Karamatsu. If you need extra pain medicine just ask us."

The list went on and on and on for another twenty minutes.

Jyushi's usual morning practice was banned for the time being.

Baseball was to be only watched from the TV, not played.

"Then, the last rule! You're not allowed to tell lies. If there's anything bothering you or you're hurting, tell us right away", Osomatsu finished with a satisfied huff and sat back down.

"That is the number one rule", Ichimatsu clarified.

Jyushimatsu felt a bit guilty that the brothers had to establish that kind of rule in the first place.

"Okay! No lies", he made a pinky promise with Ichi, who smiled in return.

"No lies", Ichimatsu agreed, "That applies to the rest of us, too."

Osomatsu had ended his monologue but the list wasn't complete yet.

"Osomatsu, didn't you forget something?" Ichimatsu tried.

"Hmm?"

"Our rules?" Ichimatsu put extra weight onto the word 'our'.

"Aa! Those!" Osomatsu coughed.

"Yes?"

"No alcohol, no Pachinko and no partying."

"Yes", Ichi nodded, "So Jyushi, we're not allowed to drink any alcohol as long as you have your medication. It's just not fair. The Pachinko rule has been active before this, too. The partying is because we thought you need a quiet place to recover and our parties are nothing but that."

Jyushimatsu nodded in agreement. The rules he had didn't sound so horrible anymore. Taking alcohol and Pachinko away from Osomatsu sounded like torture to him.

It also seemed like it was just that for the oldest since he was lying on the floor without a word.

"Osomatsu?" Jyushi tried to get his brother's attention.

"Hmm?"

"Are you sure about this?"

"Of course! I mean, we did take baseball away from you. We're just being fair."

Ichimatsu was proud of Osomatsu. Not that he'd ever tell it to him though.

Soon after their conversation, Jyushi got tired and went upstairs to have a nap with Karamatsu. ESP Kitty followed.

Ichimatsu and Osomatsu were left alone downstairs.

Ichi was feeding some stray cats that had come to their front door. He was glad the oldest hadn't found his secret stash this time.

Osomatsu was reading some random comic while munching on some potato chips.

The atmosphere was serene.

Choromatsu and Todomatsu arrived back home around the same time Jyushi woke up.

"Hello!" Totty cheered as he stepped in, "We brought some Oden!"

"From Chibita?" Osomatsu questioned.

"Of course. He told us to say hi. Added some extra just for Jyushi, too", Choromatsu dropped the bags onto the table, "Not like him. I paid half of our debt by the way. You guys owe me."

"Yeah, yeah", Osomatsu mumbled. There was no way he was going to pay.

Jyushi, alongside Karamatsu, came downstairs after the delicious smell.

"How was work?" Karamatsu asked his brothers sitting down with them around the table.

"Good, not that many customers today either", Totty answered nonchalantly while flipping through his phone.

He showed some pictures to Jyushi, who clapped his hands in delight. Although Jyushi had no eye for his art, Totty loved to see his reaction.

"Choromatsu?" Karamatsu began unpacking the food.

"Normal. Boss was still a bit pissed off about the past few days. I explained to him what happened. What's his problem, seriously?" Choromatsu began rambling as he apportioned the food amongst the brothers. A tough day at work, it seemed.

"Don't touch those, Osomatsu! They're for Jyushi!" Totty slapped his big brother's hand away from Jyushi's portion, "Chibita specially told us they're for him."

"Okay", Osomatsu gave up. He was sure Jyushi would sneak him some.

The brothers weren't used to having Oden without beer.

They went together like cream and strawberries. Alone they both were good but together they'd taste heavenly.

They'd manage, somehow, for Jyushi's sake.

Alcohol and medicine didn't mix. Especially strong pain meds.

Choromatsu suddenly stood up and went to the kitchen. When he came back he had another plate and a pill bottle with him.

It was time for Jyushi to take his medicine.

"Here", he gave the plate to Jyushi, who was busy devouring his dinner, "Do you need any extra pain killers?"

Jyushi swallowed his mouth empty, "Nope."

"Good. Should we try doing some of those stretches today?"

"Yeah!"

The stretches were simple enough.

Choromatsu and Jyushi did all of them very carefully, looking at the guide at all times to make sure they did them correctly the first time.

Ichi had joined them with ESP Kitty on his lap. They both did the stretches, too.

Every other stretch went perfectly well until it came the time for the broken hand. Like Choromatsu had expected, it wasn't ready to be moved just yet.

They'd try again later.

For now, they were all simply too tired to keep going.

"Should we try again tomorrow?" Choromatsu suggested, "And Ichi, stop mocking us."

Ichi was in the middle of a ridiculous stretch. He looked like a cat stretching after waking up.

"Ichi is a kitty!" Jyushi smiled trying to mimic his brother's moves.

"Quit it, both of you", Choromatsu scolded them with a smile, "Go brush your teeth."

Ichimatsu pouted, "Let's go, Jyushi", he stood up and lead his brother upstairs.

After all six of them were finally in bed, it was apparent that Jyushi couldn't sleep.

He fidgeted and rolled around annoying ESP Kitty, who tried to sleep, with his movement.

In the end Karamatsu was the one to make his move. He stood up and sat next to Jyushi.

He'd be leaving to work soon anyways, so he could as well do this.

"How about a lullaby, brother?" he asked Jyushi as he tucked him in.

The four others burrowed their heads under the blanket. No lullabies for them.

"Okay", Jyushi smiled, "Is it a new one?"

"Maybe", Karamatsu smiled as he adjusted his guitar.

'Where did he get that?' the others sweat dropped.

The first few notes were a bit awkward but when Karamatsu got into it, a sweet melody emerged.

Karamatsu hummed along the guitar. His husky voice matched the instrument perfectly.

Jyushi hummed along, too. He knew this one. Or at least he could've sworn he had hear it somewhere before.

It was the song Karamatsu had been composing while staying in the hospital with his little brother.

There were no real lyrics for the song yet, so Karamatsu continued his humming wishing that the lyrics would just come naturally.

Ichi had already fallen asleep lulled by the melody. The rest were listening to the two. The song was good, to be honest.

In the end, all five brothers were asleep.

Karamatsu finished the song with some long notes before putting the guitar away.

He fixed the blanket on Jyushi and gave him a kiss on the forehead, "Sweet dreams, brother."

He stretched his muscles, sore from sitting down for so long.

"Well, I'm off to work."


	15. Chapter 15: Good Morning, Sunshine

The brothers woke up like usual.

Karamatsu was already back from work and snoring very loudly. He didn't wake up to the alarm clock.

Jyushimatsu had woken Choromatsu up during the night, much to the big brother's dislike.

Of course he was ready to help his little brother in everything but he was also a very light sleeper. It wasn't easy for him to fall to sleep when woken up.

The fifth brother had use the toilet, nothing serious. Other than that, there had been no action at all. Jyushi had slept soundly through the whole night.

The only difference in their sleeping routine seemingly caused by the accident was that it was difficult to get Jyushi out of bed in the mornings. The brothers guessed it was because he had no reason to really get out of bed early. He wasn't able to play baseball or go warm up before the day's practice anyways, so why bother.

Ichimatsu was a bit concerned about this new turn of events but decided it was surely just a phase. The sore muscles were to blame, he was sure. Once his brother was able to swing the bat again, he'd be up in seconds and even before the alarm rung.

For now it was a fight getting Jyushi out of bed and cleaned up. He was being cooperative when he felt like it though, unlike certain oldest brother who also loved to sleep, a lot.

Jyushimatsu's movements were lethargic for half an hour after waking up. Ichi usually stayed with his brother during that time snuggled to his side with ESP Kitty.

The two usually ended up napping lightly until the cook of the day shouted them downstairs to eat breakfast.

It was Osomatsu's turn to make breakfast today.

The dining table wasn't the war zone this time. It was the kitchen and it was bad.

Osomatsu was a bad cook. Like, really bad. To the level where Choromatsu knew to have the fire extinguisher ready at hand when the oldest cooked.

Osomatsu was one of those people who'd probably manage to fail at boiling water.

He never looked at cook books. Said it was too much hassle. He might glace at the picture and the list of ingredients but that was it.

If he felt like the pancake mix needed a litre of milk, he poured a whole carton into the mix. But if we were talking about pancake mix here, milk wasn't the biggest problem. It was the eggs. Osomatsu had never figured out how to properly crack one, so the dough was sure to have some extra calcium in it.

It had actually been either Osomatsu's or Todomatsu's turn today.

The oldest or the youngest.

In other words the brothers' options were either the laziest cook ever or the pioneer of making food.

Todomatsu had once defrosted food in the microwave on the warmest setting for three whole minutes. The food, of course, had burned somewhere during the second minute. Their kitchen even to this day smelt slightly burned.

When asked what Totty had to say to defend himself, he had simply told them, 'If it's on the highest setting, then I can defrost it faster, duh! I'll save time!'

The brothers always questioned what they'd be having for breakfast on the previous day. Totty had asked them if they wanted to try French toast. He had apparently gotten a great recipe from a co-worker.

No offense but explosions were the last thing they wanted right now.

They chose Osomatsu to make them breakfast, no matter how simple it'd be.

Today, it was toast and eggs. Simple enough. Just stick the toast to the toaster and fry the eggs.

Well, the eggs were meant to be whole, cooked eggs, but they ended up scrambled instead, plus the usual extra calcium.

The toast was only slightly burned this time, from the edges.

Osomatsu presented the simple meal to his brothers like it was going to be their last.

They were glad they didn't have any fine tableware in the household, or Osomatsu was sure to serve them scrambled eggs on the finest china and orange juice in a wine glass.

"Here, eat up!" Osomatsu proudly presented the food to his hungry brothers with wild hand gestures.

The amount of food on the plates was disappointing. It wouldn't be enough.

"I'll go get some leftovers from the fridge", Choromatsu mumbled, "Let's hope there's something."

"Yeah", the brothers, even Osomatsu, mumbled together.

Luckily there were some ancient dinner leftovers in the freezer which Choromatsu warmed up and brought to the table.

"What is that?" Jyushimatsu curiously poked the unknown mass on the table.

He and Ichimatsu had been downstairs to witness the measly meal made by Osomatsu.

Now they were faced with mystery food XXX straight from the depths of their own freezer.

It moved, jiggled to be more precise.

"It moved!" Totty screamed, "What is it, honestly?!"

Osomatsu and Karamatsu, who had come home from work in time to have breakfast before bed, stared at the food.

"Meatloaf?" was Karamatsu's wild guess.

"I'd say soup. Look, that's carrot right there", Osomatsu poked at an orange piece in the blob.

"What soup acts like jelly?!" Totty was getting really concerned. Had they dug up an unknown species suffering the effects of radiation? If so, what was it doing in their fridge? Mom?

Unnoticed by the rest of the brothers, Jyushi was eating the so-called blob.

"It's good! Have some, Ichi!" he cheered, mouth full of the stuff.

"N-No thanks, I'm full."

"But you only had one toast and some egg!"

"I'm on a diet?" Ichi tried.

"Jyushi!" Choromatsu pried his brother's mouth open with Totty, "Did you put that in your mouth?! Spit it out!"

"Why?" asked Jyushi, at least he tried, with an open mouth, "It's good."

"Do you even know what it is?" Choromatsu asked trying to sound calm while searching for the number of the poisoning hotline for help. He was also checking to see if any of the local shops were open this early. He was hungry.

"Hmmm", Jyushi thought for a moment eyeing the unidentified food, "Gravy?"

"Don't eat food you can't identify!" Totty yelled.

"Okay."

Choromatsu sighed, "I saw some bacon in the fridge. There were some eggs left, too. I'll go fry us some."

It was like a holy light had descended onto the third brother. He was glowing in his brothers' eyes. Their savior.

The mystery blob could later be found in the dumpster where it was sure to stay. Ichi had made sure even the stray cats stayed far away from it.

Totty and Choromatsu left to work, like usual.

Karamatsu was back to bed.

Ichi agreed to wash the dishes. Jyushi was there to help.

They both ended up as wet as the dished they were trying to wash since Jyushi tried to commence a foam war and Ichi just couldn't let his little brother win.

Osomatsu was on the living room floor suffering from a mild food coma. Still looking content all the same.

At some point in the morning, Ichimatsu left for his usual morning round of feeding cats. He had entrusted Jyushi in the care of the oldest who had promised to take care of him.

Osomatsu opened the door to the balcony after making sure the fourth brother was gone.

"Aah!" he whined while taking out a pack of cigarettes from his hoodie pocket, "I could've eaten more!"

He light the cancer stick and took a long drag.

Jyushimatsu, like the rest of the brothers knew the oldest had been a smoker. He had managed to quit once though. It seemed that everything that had been going on lately had just been too much for him.

Jyushi made his way to sit next to his brother.

He swung his legs idly for a while before speaking up, "Didn't you say you had quit? The rest won't be proud of you."

"Ouch, you got me there", Osomatsu snickered as the cigarette hung from his mouth, "I did quit. It's just too stressful without any alcohol. The reason to lie around and do nothing was taken away from me. I almost miss the hangovers."

"Then why? Is it because of me?" Jyushi knew his brother was trying to sound funny. Alcohol wasn't the real reason for this.

"No, no! Don't even think about that!" Osomatsu turned to face Jyushi looking nervous, "It's my job… and maybe the alcohol ban, too."

"What about it?"

"I got fired. Karamatsu promised me he wouldn't tell you guys."

"Why?" Jyushi massaged Osomatsu's back comfortingly.

"The boss said something like 'Are you really taking this seriously?' and 'Working and socialization are two different things'", Osomatsu mocked his old boss' voice as he took another smoke.

Like Jyushi had thought, his big brother's lifestyle just didn't go that well with the society.

"What are you going to do now? Choromatsu will find out eventually", Jyushi asked gazing to the horizon.

Osomatsu plopped down to lie on the floor, "I'll search for a new one when that happens."

"Alright", Jyushi smiled. Basic Osomatsu, never in a hurry, "But you have to promise me something."

"Huh?"

"Quit smoking."

"Yeah, yeah", Osomatsu smiled. He was going to.

The two sat for a while.

In the end Osomatsu got bored and suggested they clean the house.

And that was what Ichimatsu arrived home to, cleaning.

Well, to be more precise, he came home to a scene of absolute chaos.

Jyushimatsu was standing on their dining table. Seemed dangerous enough. He had a traffic cone on his head and was holding a trash can while Osomatsu tried to throw paper balls into it.

They were getting rid of the trash but not very efficiently.

Half of the shots had missed and were now lying around the floor.

Osomatsu just couldn't have his cake and eat it too. Cleaning and having fun were two different things.

Jyushi seemed to be having fun though. He was laughing while dodging the shots of his big brother.

"Hey! Don't dodge them!" Osomatsu raged, he wasn't a good looser, "They're supposed to go into the basket! Basketball! Don't you know what that is?"

"Nope!" Jyushimatsu laughed, "Baseball is way more fun."

Osomatsu fished a badminton racket from one of the living room's closets, "Ha!"

He proceeded trying to hit the poor paper balls into the bin with it.

Of course, missing this time, too.

"A baseball bat would do better", Jyushi tried to inform his brother while laughing hysterically at Osomatsu's crazy moves.

"What are you saying? I'm doing fantastic!"

Ichimatsu had now been standing in the hallway for half an hour. He didn't know how to react or what to do.

Finally, Jyushi noticed the fourth brother in the hallway. The cone of his head was obstructing his vision, "Ichi, you're back! Did you have fun?"

"Y-Yeah, I guess I had fun. There were many cats", Ichi answered, "What are you doing?"

The simple answer came in unison, "Cleaning up!"

"I can see. Any progress?"

The duo looked around, "Not really!"

"Of course", Ichi sighed.

He walked to the table, took the cone off his little brother's head and lifted him up bridal style.

"There's a game on the TV", he plopped Jyushi down onto the sofa and turned on the TV, "Baseball. If I remember right, you liked this team."

"Ooh!" the game had been going on for quite some time but Jyushi didn't let that bother him. What was important was that the team he rooted for was winning.

Now that Jyushi was off the table and safely back to the ground Ichi turned to Osomatsu, "There was a flash sale at the local super market. We're having chicken curry tonight."

Osomatsu was already drooling, "Super! Can I help?"

The answer was straightforward, "No, but you may watch the game with Jyushi. Keep him company while I'm busy."

"Roger that!" Osomatsu saluted as he anchored his bottom firmly onto the sofa.

"And Osomatsu", Ichimatsu continued.

"Hmm?"

"You reek."


	16. Chapter 16: First Visit to the Doctor's

Ichimatsu was, luckily, one of the better cooks in the family.

The dinner was done and soon all three were sitting on the sofa enjoying their meal.

They usually didn't eat on the sofa but the game was still on and Jyushi wouldn't budge until it was over.

The brothers were unarmed against the fifth brother's puppy dog eyes. He had definitely gotten some tips from the pro AKA 'Totty the master of innocent eyes'.

Jyushi's team was winning, still.

Osomatsu had clearly entered seventh heaven judging how dazed he looked eating the curry, "So good! Perfect!"

The cook himself was blushing. Ichi wasn't used to being complimented.

"It's not that great. The chicken is dry and the sauce is too spicy", the mumbled.

"Not true!" Jyushi smiled, "It's delicious! I hope you left some for the others, too."

"In the fridge", Ichi confirmed and grabbed Osomatsu's hoodie to keep him still, "Not for you."

"Awww man", the glutton whined, "But I'm still hungry."

"Eat your head."

At that moment, Karamatsu came down the stairs. The smell had woken him up, "Dinner?"

"Yeah, curry!" Jyushi cheered.

"Sounds good", Karamatsu gave Ichi the thumbs up, "By the way, Jyushi. Don't you have your first hospital visit today?"

Ichimatsu broke from the death stare he had been giving the second brother, "Ah, right! You have your first doctor's visit today, Jyushi!"

"Hm-m", Jyushi nodded, "In the evening, wasn't it?"

"Three o'clock", Osomatsu mumbled from somewhere on the floor.

Ichi sighed in relief, "We're not late, thank god. I had totally forgotten."

"Can we go see Granny afterwards?" Jyushi questioned.

"Of course, if you have the energy to", Ichi pointed out.

"Can we go shopping before that?"

"Of course. Do you have anything special in mind?"

"Flowers!"

"Okay, there's a florist's on the way, too, if I remember correctly."

"Yay!"

"But first, the hospital", Ichimatsu reminded his younger brother.

Three o'clock rolled around quite fast. Maybe it was because the brothers had had to clean up the living room after the little game of trash basketball.

Jyushi had actually been eager to leave. Probably because he had been cooped up inside for the past few weeks. Meeting Granny must've also affected the situation.

So there they were, in the hospital.

Ichi couldn't say he had missed the place.

Osomatsu, who had insisted on coming along, must've shared the same opinion judging by his expression.

The doctor seemed as happy to see his patient as the patient was to see him.

"Jyushimatsu!" he cheered as he saw his sitting in the hallway, "How have you been?"

"Doctor!" Jyushi replied enthusiastically, "Great, we played basketball today!"

The doctor glanced at the older brothers with a slightly displeased look, "Basketball?"

"Hm! With Osomatsu!"

Osomatsu tried to get the message across by waving his hands wildly. It was NOT actual basketball just a little game. In the end the doctor seemed to understand and nodded.

"That must've been fun. Say, are you ready for your check-up?"

"Yeah!" Jyushi followed the man inside his office.

The man was a children's doctor, alright. The office was nothing you'd see regularly. The walls were painted with a landscape of a forest and of course the different animals that lived there.

Green was a calming color. Ichi remembered that much.

There were many stuffed toys and problem solving games, too. It almost seemed like they had stepped into a kid's dream room. The doctor was a little childish himself, so maybe this really was what his dream room would've looked like.

Ichi would have liked to hug a huge cat plush that was sitting on one of the chairs. He restrained himself.

Jyushi got a Rubik's cube after sitting down. The doctor told him he could fiddle with that if he was feeling nervous.

The brothers thought it was a great idea. Jyushi would've otherwise tormented his cuticles.

"So, how have you been feeling?" the doctor began simple enough.

"Great. I've been sleeping well."

Jyushi really wasn't the best when it came to explanations.

"Any fits?"

"Sweating, nothing else."

"Great! The medicine should already be well out of your system, too. Have you been doing the stretches I gave you?"

"Hm! Choromatsu showed me how to do them!" Jyushi's face light up, "We can't do the hand ones yet though."

"That's alright. You mustn't rush."

"Okay!"

"How about we take a blood test now? Then we can take your blood pressure."

Jyushi's answer came in a form of an extended hand.

"Alright."

Conclusion, Jyushi was doing just fine, physically.

They had managed to finish quickly.

The doctor gave Jyushi a questionnaire to fill at the end. The two brothers didn't know what the test had been about and Jyushi wouldn't tell them.

It had been to test Jyushi's current mood.

The results, mildly depressed.

The doctor didn't mention this though since Jyushi didn't show any suicidal tendencies. Telling the results would only make the brothers act differently and affect the situation even more. Possibly negatively.

He'd call Choromatsu about it later whom he had promised to tell if something like this happened. He was sure to know how to act.

Jyushimatsu, Osomatsu and Ichimatsu's next stop would be a local florist's. Jyushi had told the two brothers he'd be using his own money and his own money only. He'd get to pick.

The two had nothing against it. They just questioned his motives a bit.

Jyushi stopped to stare at the huge sunflowers outside the shop, "Huge!"

"Hm", Ichi agreed, "I wonder if the ones Granny has are this big, too."

Osomatsu was intimidated. The flowers were taller than him, the oldest brother.

The three went into the shop not even knowing what they were going to buy. Jyushi did say flowers but you never knew with him. His 'flowers' could mean the flowers on an apple tree.

"I want this!" Jyushi suddenly pointed at a random plant.

Osomatsu looked at the plant his little brother had picked out, "That's a strawberry bush, Jyushi. It's not a flower."

"Let him have it. Don't wait for the eyes", Ichi mumbled facing Jyushi, "Okay, do you want to plant a whole lot or just a couple?"

"Hmm…" Jyushi thought for a moment, "Six!"

"Six strawberry seedlings. Anything else?" Ichi wasn't concerned what his brother would buy but how much money it'd cost him. Did he even have any money on him?

"That one!" Jyushi pointed at yet another plant.

"That is an apple tree, Jyushi", Osomatsu tried once again. Who the heck would carry that?

"Granny doesn't have an apple tree. How is she supposed to make apple pie without one?" Jyushi's simple thinking still managed to amuse the brothers.

"Well, you do have a point", Osomatsu chuckled.

Ichimatsu joined the oldest, "She'll love it. Fresh apples from her own tree. I bet the pie will taste even more delicious with them."

"Hm!" Jyushi nodded as he picked out a good little tree.

It was a good thing the florist's was so well equipped otherwise they would've needed to go someplace else to get the tree.

The cashier also seemed amused as she received the payment, "Since you bought so many, I guess I've got give you a discount. You seem like someone who really cares for plants. We green thumbs need to keep together."

"Yeah!" Jyushi agreed although not understanding what the nice lady had meant.

"Just remember to water them plenty after planting them. I hope you'll have your first harvest next summer. Especially this variety of apple is known for its juiciness. The strawberries are great as well, of course."

Jyushi smiled, "Thank you!"

"You're welcome. Come again later!"

It would have normally been obvious to have Jyushimatsu carry the tree. He had the muscle needed, after all. Now that he only had one arm in use though, it wouldn't do.

In the end, as in after a quick game of rock paper scissors, Osomatsu carried the tree, glad that his little brother had chosen the smallest one in the shop.

Ichimatsu and Jyushimatsu both had a bag of three strawberry seedlings. Jyushi tried hard to control himself and not swing the paper bag around. Ichi smiled fondly at his concentration.

The journey to Granny's place wasn't a long one and soon the three brothers were ringing the bell at her front door.

"She's not answering the door", Osomatsu pointed out the obvious wiping away sweat from his forehead.

"Doesn't she have a shift?" Ichi asked unsure.

A lightbulb on Jyushi's head, "Yeah! She has work!"

"Don't you have a spare key? How about we surprise her?" Ichi suggested with a smirk.

"We can plant the tree and the berries while she works!"

"Exactly", Ichi nodded, "Let's go in."

But Granny had an excellent guard dog. Well, not exactly a dog. A guard cat.

Batter ran to the trio's feet as they stepped in, meowing loudly. He made sure the visitors knew they were in his territory.

But these were no normal visitors. Batter knew these three.

A quick sniff confirmed it. It was the Matsuno brothers, or some of them at least.

'It was Jyushi!' Batter realized with a squeak.

"Hello, Batter. Guarding the house?" Ichimatsu greeted the feline. He was happy to see Batter doing so great.

The cat jumped.

Jyushi managed to catch the animal on his lap, "Batter! Is Granny working?"

A purr was the answer he got. Guess she was.

"We're going to surprise her!" Osomatsu revealed from behind the tree he was still carrying.

Batter tilted his little head. Surprise?

'Adorable', Ichi thought, 'Must pet it.'

"We're going to plant a tree!" Jyushi exclaimed.

"And strawberries!" Osomatsu added.

Batter seemed to get excited, too, as it began circling the brothers' feet.

Jyushi fetched the gardening equipment and the brothers were ready.

All three had cute gloves and aprons on since there was nothing else available. They needed to keep clean after all.

Ichi was happy that he got a cat print instead of the flower print the other two had.

"Jyushi, we need to cover your cast", Ichi stopped his little brother from diving face-first into the flower bed. A plastic bag would need to do. Ichi tied a bag tightly around the cast adding some tape to the mix, too.

Ichi was quite proud of himself, "There we go. Now we're ready."

"Yay!" Jyushi cheered as he took the first strawberry bush to plant it.

There was a long pause.

"Jyushi?" Osomatsu tried.

"Where are we going to plant these?"

"You're telling me you don't know?!" Osomatsu screamed and if they could his muscles would've, too.

Jyushi thought for a moment, "Nope!"

"How about we plant them over there?" Ichi pointed at an empty patch of ground near a fence, "There's nothing else there anyways."

Jyushi seemed to agree to his big brother's plan. He quickly made his way to the patch and slammed the poor seedling to the ground.

Osomatsu sighed, "Jyushi, we need to turn the ground first."

The two brothers had thought the fifth had experience on planting but it seemed they were wrong.

"Well, Osomatsu, we better get to work", Ichimatsu smirked.

"Eeeh?!" Osomatsu sighed as he took a shovel.

Jyushi got a small shovel to dig with. He wasn't ready to do any tough physical exercise just yet but he surely wanted to help.

After about an hour of sweat and tears the trio had turned the ground. Now, the plants.

"Do you want to plant the strawberries or the tree here?" Ichi asked Jyushi who was beginning to look slightly fatigued.

"Strawberries!"

"Alright, put them in."

Jyushi put the plants in, more gently this time and patted them for good measure.

"Osomatsu, some soil", Ichimatsu ordered.

"Don't order me around. I'm older than you", the oldest huffed but shoveled the soil onto the patch, "There, perfect. Are we done now? I'm tired."

Jyushimatsu and Ichimatsu both stared at his brother like he had grown a second head. Then they pointed at the tree leaning lying on the grass.

"Damnit", Osomatsu cursed, "Back to digging!"

Thumbs up. Back to digging.

The tree was much easier to plant. Just dig a deep hole, stick it there and put some soil on top.

That didn't mean that the three brothers weren't exhausted afterwards. It might have been easier but no less burdensome.

They took a rest under a shade. They were all drenched in sweat and panting.

"Looks good", Ichi pointed out.

"Hm!" Jyushi agreed.

Osomatsu was too tired to speak so he gave a thumbs up.

The three fell asleep soon afterwards.

When Granny's shift ended, she decided to boil some tea for herself.

What she didn't expect was to see three Matsuno brothers sleeping in one big pile in her garden.

Batter was watching over them from the living room table.

Granny sat next to the table looking amused, "I wonder what they've done this time."

Batter jumped off the table and made his way to the garden. He looked back over his shoulder and stared right into Granny's eyes.

"Come and find out?"

A meow and a tail swishing.

"Okay, okay", Granny laughed as she stepped outside.

She was glad it was warm out today. It meant that the brothers wouldn't freeze in their sleep.

Jyushi, who was sleeping on top of the brother pile, woke up to the sound of Granny's laughter.

"Hm?" he mumbled and he stood up, "Granny?"

"I see you've been busy", Granny smiled, "Is that an apple tree?"

"Yep! Now you can make apple pie", Jyushi then pointed at the strawberries they had planted, "We got you strawberries, too!"

"Oh my!" Granny exclaimed, "Batter seems to really like those."

The cat was walking among the small bushes smelling them.

"Just don't dig any of them up", Granny scolded the cat, "He dug up some of my tomatoes."

"Batter! That's not how you eat them!" Jyushi laughed.

Batter seemed almost like he was blushing as he sneaked back in the house.

Granny and Jyushi followed after fetching a blanket for the two remaining brothers. They sat down to drink some of the tea Granny had made before.

After a minute or two of quiet sipping, Granny spoke up, "So, how have you been?"

Jyushi was petting Batter who was rolling wildly on his lap, "We visited the doctor today."

"Did he say anything?"

"He said I'm doing just fine", Jyushi told her swinging his body around, another nervous tic.

"Alright", Granny knew not to go into detail but she had to ask a very difficult question, "How about the arm?"

If Jyushi wasn't nervous before, he was now. The hand wasn't a thing he wanted to talk about.

"I-I can move my fingers a bit", he finally mumbled.

"That's great to hear", Granny smiled. There had been some muscle damage as well as a serious fracture to the hand. There was no way it'd be moving this soon.

"I've been doing some stretches with Choromatsu", Jyushi smiled bashfully, "The muscles in my legs are doing much better already."

"Ready to work yet?" Granny winked. She was sure work would cheer Jyushi up.

"When can I start?" Jyushi cracked a smile.

"The usual time the usual place?"

"Got that!"

A beep interrupted the two. It was Jyushi's mobile phone.

Jyushi took the device out of his pocket and read the message, "It's from Karamatsu!"

"The gentleman?"

"Hm! He asks if we have a key with us. Says he's going out with a fan."

"Wish him luck."

"Yep!"

Karamatsu was indeed going to go out with a fan tonight. With the nurse who gave him his number later that week.

Karamatsu had called the man as soon as he had had the time. They had talked for a while.

It appeared that Karamatsu's fashion had really made an impact on the young nurse.

He had sounded really timid when he talked and stuttered a lot.

He told Karamatsu he didn't really have any confidence.

He hadn't had the guts to ask his crush out for three years even though they were childhood friends. He thought that maybe if he dressed like Karamatsu he'd feel more confident.

Karamatsu had reassured him that everything was cool and that if he wanted, they could go shopping together someday. Karamatsu would share some tips.

In the end they had managed to arrange a meeting, for tonight.

They'd begin by having a coffee in the local café. Not the one where Totty worked. Too risky.

There they would talk and get to know each other. Karamatsu saw it necessary so that they could buy fitting clothes. He needed to know what the man wanted and how he was like before buying anything.

Karamatsu was the first to arrive.

He ordered a latte and sat down to wait.

After fifteen minutes of waiting, the slim figure of the nurse pushed the café door open. The jingle of the bells got Karamatsu to lift his gaze.

The man flinched, "H-Hello! Sorry I'm late. The shift got prolonged. We got a new patient in the last minute."

"It's okay", Karamatsu assured the nurse as he sat down, "Would you like anything? Sorry, I ordered already."

"That's okay! I'll have some coffee", the young man smiled.

When the two finally had their beverages and had sat down, it was time to talk.

"So, is your crush cute?"

Karamatsu's date almost choked on his drink.

After a while he managed to compose himself, "I-I wouldn't call him cute… He's more of the cool type."

"Aah", Karamatsu nodded, a male crush, "So you want to look good for him?"

"Yes. I think I'd be able to ask him out then."

"Alright, I can help you with that."

"I'm sorry. I know you're busy but when I saw you in the hallway that day I thought to myself, 'If I just could look that cool. I'd have the guts to do anything'."

Karamatsu was taken aback by the compliment, "Well then, what are we waiting for? Let's go!" he cheered grabbing the man's hand and leading him out of the café.

Ichimatsu was, luckily, one of the better cooks in the family.

The dinner was done and soon all three were sitting on the sofa enjoying their meal.

They usually didn't eat on the sofa but the game was still on and Jyushi wouldn't budge until it was over.

The brothers were unarmed against the fifth brother's puppy dog eyes. He had definitely gotten some tips from the pro AKA 'Totty the master of innocent eyes'.

Jyushi's team was winning, still.

Osomatsu had clearly entered seventh heaven judging how dazed he looked eating the curry, "So good! Perfect!"

The cook himself was blushing. Ichi wasn't used to being complimented.

"It's not that great. The chicken is dry and the sauce is too spicy", the mumbled.

"Not true!" Jyushi smiled, "It's delicious! I hope you left some for the others, too."

"In the fridge", Ichi confirmed and grabbed Osomatsu's hoodie to keep him still, "Not for you."

"Awww man", the glutton whined, "But I'm still hungry."

"Eat your head."

At that moment, Karamatsu came down the stairs. The smell had woken him up, "Dinner?"

"Yeah, curry!" Jyushi cheered.

"Sounds good", Karamatsu gave Ichi the thumbs up, "By the way, Jyushi. Don't you have your first hospital visit today?"

Ichimatsu broke from the death stare he had been giving the second brother, "Ah, right! You have your first doctor's visit today, Jyushi!"

"Hm-m", Jyushi nodded, "In the evening, wasn't it?"

"Three o'clock", Osomatsu mumbled from somewhere on the floor.

Ichi sighed in relief, "We're not late, thank god. I had totally forgotten."

"Can we go see Granny afterwards?" Jyushi questioned.

"Of course, if you have the energy to", Ichi pointed out.

"Can we go shopping before that?"

"Of course. Do you have anything special in mind?"

"Flowers!"

"Okay, there's a florist's on the way, too, if I remember correctly."

"Yay!"

"But first, the hospital", Ichimatsu reminded his younger brother.

Three o'clock rolled around quite fast. Maybe it was because the brothers had had to clean up the living room after the little game of trash basketball.

Jyushi had actually been eager to leave. Probably because he had been cooped up inside for the past few weeks. Meeting Granny must've also affected the situation.

So there they were, in the hospital.

Ichi couldn't say he had missed the place.

Osomatsu, who had insisted on coming along, must've shared the same opinion judging by his expression.

The doctor seemed as happy to see his patient as the patient was to see him.

"Jyushimatsu!" he cheered as he saw his sitting in the hallway, "How have you been?"

"Doctor!" Jyushi replied enthusiastically, "Great, we played basketball today!"

The doctor glanced at the older brothers with a slightly displeased look, "Basketball?"

"Hm! With Osomatsu!"

Osomatsu tried to get the message across by waving his hands wildly. It was NOT actual basketball just a little game. In the end the doctor seemed to understand and nodded.

"That must've been fun. Say, are you ready for your check-up?"

"Yeah!" Jyushi followed the man inside his office.

The man was a children's doctor, alright. The office was nothing you'd see regularly. The walls were painted with a landscape of a forest and of course the different animals that lived there.

Green was a calming color. Ichi remembered that much.

There were many stuffed toys and problem solving games, too. It almost seemed like they had stepped into a kid's dream room. The doctor was a little childish himself, so maybe this really was what his dream room would've looked like.

Ichi would have liked to hug a huge cat plush that was sitting on one of the chairs. He restrained himself.

Jyushi got a Rubik's cube after sitting down. The doctor told him he could fiddle with that if he was feeling nervous.

The brothers thought it was a great idea. Jyushi would've otherwise tormented his cuticles.

"So, how have you been feeling?" the doctor began simple enough.

"Great. I've been sleeping well."

Jyushi really wasn't the best when it came to explanations.

"Any fits?"

"Sweating, nothing else."

"Great! The medicine should already be well out of your system, too. Have you been doing the stretches I gave you?"

"Hm! Choromatsu showed me how to do them!" Jyushi's face light up, "We can't do the hand ones yet though."

"That's alright. You mustn't rush."

"Okay!"

"How about we take a blood test now? Then we can take your blood pressure."

Jyushi's answer came in a form of an extended hand.

"Alright."

Conclusion, Jyushi was doing just fine, physically.

They had managed to finish quickly.

The doctor gave Jyushi a questionnaire to fill at the end. The two brothers didn't know what the test had been about and Jyushi wouldn't tell them.

It had been to test Jyushi's current mood.

The results, mildly depressed.

The doctor didn't mention this though since Jyushi didn't show any suicidal tendencies. Telling the results would only make the brothers act differently and affect the situation even more. Possibly negatively.

He'd call Choromatsu about it later whom he had promised to tell if something like this happened. He was sure to know how to act.

Jyushimatsu, Osomatsu and Ichimatsu's next stop would be a local florist's. Jyushi had told the two brothers he'd be using his own money and his own money only. He'd get to pick.

The two had nothing against it. They just questioned his motives a bit.

Jyushi stopped to stare at the huge sunflowers outside the shop, "Huge!"

"Hm", Ichi agreed, "I wonder if the ones Granny has are this big, too."

Osomatsu was intimidated. The flowers were taller than him, the oldest brother.

The three went into the shop not even knowing what they were going to buy. Jyushi did say flowers but you never knew with him. His 'flowers' could mean the flowers on an apple tree.

"I want this!" Jyushi suddenly pointed at a random plant.

Osomatsu looked at the plant his little brother had picked out, "That's a strawberry bush, Jyushi. It's not a flower."

"Let him have it. Don't wait for the eyes", Ichi mumbled facing Jyushi, "Okay, do you want to plant a whole lot or just a couple?"

"Hmm…" Jyushi thought for a moment, "Six!"

"Six strawberry seedlings. Anything else?" Ichi wasn't concerned what his brother would buy but how much money it'd cost him. Did he even have any money on him?

"That one!" Jyushi pointed at yet another plant.

"That is an apple tree, Jyushi", Osomatsu tried once again. Who the heck would carry that?

"Granny doesn't have an apple tree. How is she supposed to make apple pie without one?" Jyushi's simple thinking still managed to amuse the brothers.

"Well, you do have a point", Osomatsu chuckled.

Ichimatsu joined the oldest, "She'll love it. Fresh apples from her own tree. I bet the pie will taste even more delicious with them."

"Hm!" Jyushi nodded as he picked out a good little tree.

It was a good thing the florist's was so well equipped otherwise they would've needed to go someplace else to get the tree.

The cashier also seemed amused as she received the payment, "Since you bought so many, I guess I've got give you a discount. You seem like someone who really cares for plants. We green thumbs need to keep together."

"Yeah!" Jyushi agreed although not understanding what the nice lady had meant.

"Just remember to water them plenty after planting them. I hope you'll have your first harvest next summer. Especially this variety of apple is known for its juiciness. The strawberries are great as well, of course."

Jyushi smiled, "Thank you!"

"You're welcome. Come again later!"

It would have normally been obvious to have Jyushimatsu carry the tree. He had the muscle needed, after all. Now that he only had one arm in use though, it wouldn't do.

In the end, as in after a quick game of rock paper scissors, Osomatsu carried the tree, glad that his little brother had chosen the smallest one in the shop.

Ichimatsu and Jyushimatsu both had a bag of three strawberry seedlings. Jyushi tried hard to control himself and not swing the paper bag around. Ichi smiled fondly at his concentration.

The journey to Granny's place wasn't a long one and soon the three brothers were ringing the bell at her front door.

"She's not answering the door", Osomatsu pointed out the obvious wiping away sweat from his forehead.

"Doesn't she have a shift?" Ichi asked unsure.

A lightbulb on Jyushi's head, "Yeah! She has work!"

"Don't you have a spare key? How about we surprise her?" Ichi suggested with a smirk.

"We can plant the tree and the berries while she works!"

"Exactly", Ichi nodded, "Let's go in."

But Granny had an excellent guard dog. Well, not exactly a dog. A guard cat.

Batter ran to the trio's feet as they stepped in, meowing loudly. He made sure the visitors knew they were in his territory.

But these were no normal visitors. Batter knew these three.

A quick sniff confirmed it. It was the Matsuno brothers, or some of them at least.

'It was Jyushi!' Batter realized with a squeak.

"Hello, Batter. Guarding the house?" Ichimatsu greeted the feline. He was happy to see Batter doing so great.

The cat jumped.

Jyushi managed to catch the animal on his lap, "Batter! Is Granny working?"

A purr was the answer he got. Guess she was.

"We're going to surprise her!" Osomatsu revealed from behind the tree he was still carrying.

Batter tilted his little head. Surprise?

'Adorable', Ichi thought, 'Must pet it.'

"We're going to plant a tree!" Jyushi exclaimed.

"And strawberries!" Osomatsu added.

Batter seemed to get excited, too, as it began circling the brothers' feet.

Jyushi fetched the gardening equipment and the brothers were ready.

All three had cute gloves and aprons on since there was nothing else available. They needed to keep clean after all.

Ichi was happy that he got a cat print instead of the flower print the other two had.

"Jyushi, we need to cover your cast", Ichi stopped his little brother from diving face-first into the flower bed. A plastic bag would need to do. Ichi tied a bag tightly around the cast adding some tape to the mix, too.

Ichi was quite proud of himself, "There we go. Now we're ready."

"Yay!" Jyushi cheered as he took the first strawberry bush to plant it.

There was a long pause.

"Jyushi?" Osomatsu tried.

"Where are we going to plant these?"

"You're telling me you don't know?!" Osomatsu screamed and if they could his muscles would've, too.

Jyushi thought for a moment, "Nope!"

"How about we plant them over there?" Ichi pointed at an empty patch of ground near a fence, "There's nothing else there anyways."

Jyushi seemed to agree to his big brother's plan. He quickly made his way to the patch and slammed the poor seedling to the ground.

Osomatsu sighed, "Jyushi, we need to turn the ground first."

The two brothers had thought the fifth had experience on planting but it seemed they were wrong.

"Well, Osomatsu, we better get to work", Ichimatsu smirked.

"Eeeh?!" Osomatsu sighed as he took a shovel.

Jyushi got a small shovel to dig with. He wasn't ready to do any tough physical exercise just yet but he surely wanted to help.

After about an hour of sweat and tears the trio had turned the ground. Now, the plants.

"Do you want to plant the strawberries or the tree here?" Ichi asked Jyushi who was beginning to look slightly fatigued.

"Strawberries!"

"Alright, put them in."

Jyushi put the plants in, more gently this time and patted them for good measure.

"Osomatsu, some soil", Ichimatsu ordered.

"Don't order me around. I'm older than you", the oldest huffed but shoveled the soil onto the patch, "There, perfect. Are we done now? I'm tired."

Jyushimatsu and Ichimatsu both stared at his brother like he had grown a second head. Then they pointed at the tree leaning lying on the grass.

"Damnit", Osomatsu cursed, "Back to digging!"

Thumbs up. Back to digging.

The tree was much easier to plant. Just dig a deep hole, stick it there and put some soil on top.

That didn't mean that the three brothers weren't exhausted afterwards. It might have been easier but no less burdensome.

They took a rest under a shade. They were all drenched in sweat and panting.

"Looks good", Ichi pointed out.

"Hm!" Jyushi agreed.

Osomatsu was too tired to speak so he gave a thumbs up.

The three fell asleep soon afterwards.

When Granny's shift ended, she decided to boil some tea for herself.

What she didn't expect was to see three Matsuno brothers sleeping in one big pile in her garden.

Batter was watching over them from the living room table.

Granny sat next to the table looking amused, "I wonder what they've done this time."

Batter jumped off the table and made his way to the garden. He looked back over his shoulder and stared right into Granny's eyes.

"Come and find out?"

A meow and a tail swishing.

"Okay, okay", Granny laughed as she stepped outside.

She was glad it was warm out today. It meant that the brothers wouldn't freeze in their sleep.

Jyushi, who was sleeping on top of the brother pile, woke up to the sound of Granny's laughter.

"Hm?" he mumbled and he stood up, "Granny?"

"I see you've been busy", Granny smiled, "Is that an apple tree?"

"Yep! Now you can make apple pie", Jyushi then pointed at the strawberries they had planted, "We got you strawberries, too!"

"Oh my!" Granny exclaimed, "Batter seems to really like those."

The cat was walking among the small bushes smelling them.

"Just don't dig any of them up", Granny scolded the cat, "He dug up some of my tomatoes."

"Batter! That's not how you eat them!" Jyushi laughed.

Batter seemed almost like he was blushing as he sneaked back in the house.

Granny and Jyushi followed after fetching a blanket for the two remaining brothers. They sat down to drink some of the tea Granny had made before.

After a minute or two of quiet sipping, Granny spoke up, "So, how have you been?"

Jyushi was petting Batter who was rolling wildly on his lap, "We visited the doctor today."

"Did he say anything?"

"He said I'm doing just fine", Jyushi told her swinging his body around, another nervous tic.

"Alright", Granny knew not to go into detail but she had to ask a very difficult question, "How about the arm?"

If Jyushi wasn't nervous before, he was now. The hand wasn't a thing he wanted to talk about.

"I-I can move my fingers a bit", he finally mumbled.

"That's great to hear", Granny smiled. There had been some muscle damage as well as a serious fracture to the hand. There was no way it'd be moving this soon.

"I've been doing some stretches with Choromatsu", Jyushi smiled bashfully, "The muscles in my legs are doing much better already."

"Ready to work yet?" Granny winked. She was sure work would cheer Jyushi up.

"When can I start?" Jyushi cracked a smile.

"The usual time the usual place?"

"Got that!"

A beep interrupted the two. It was Jyushi's mobile phone.

Jyushi took the device out of his pocket and read the message, "It's from Karamatsu!"

"The gentleman?"

"Hm! He asks if we have a key with us. Says he's going out with a fan."

"Wish him luck."

"Yep!"

Karamatsu was indeed going to go out with a fan tonight. With the nurse who gave him his number later that week.

Karamatsu had called the man as soon as he had had the time. They had talked for a while.

It appeared that Karamatsu's fashion had really made an impact on the young nurse.

He had sounded really timid when he talked and stuttered a lot.

He told Karamatsu he didn't really have any confidence.

He hadn't had the guts to ask his crush out for three years even though they were childhood friends. He thought that maybe if he dressed like Karamatsu he'd feel more confident.

Karamatsu had reassured him that everything was cool and that if he wanted, they could go shopping together someday. Karamatsu would share some tips.

In the end they had managed to arrange a meeting, for tonight.

They'd begin by having a coffee in the local café. Not the one where Totty worked. Too risky.

There they would talk and get to know each other. Karamatsu saw it necessary so that they could buy fitting clothes. He needed to know what the man wanted and how he was like before buying anything.

Karamatsu was the first to arrive.

He ordered a latte and sat down to wait.

After fifteen minutes of waiting, the slim figure of the nurse pushed the café door open. The jingle of the bells got Karamatsu to lift his gaze.

The man flinched, "H-Hello! Sorry I'm late. The shift got prolonged. We got a new patient in the last minute."

"It's okay", Karamatsu assured the nurse as he sat down, "Would you like anything? Sorry, I ordered already."

"That's okay! I'll have some coffee", the young man smiled.

When the two finally had their beverages and had sat down, it was time to talk.

"So, is your crush cute?"

Karamatsu's date almost choked on his drink.

After a while he managed to compose himself, "I-I wouldn't call him cute… He's more of the cool type."

"Aah", Karamatsu nodded, a male crush, "So you want to look good for him?"

"Yes. I think I'd be able to ask him out then."

"Alright, I can help you with that."

"I'm sorry. I know you're busy but when I saw you in the hallway that day I thought to myself, 'If I just could look that cool. I'd have the guts to do anything'."

Karamatsu was taken aback by the compliment, "Well then, what are we waiting for? Let's go!" he cheered grabbing the man's hand and leading him out of the café.


	17. Chapter 17: Working

Karamatsu dragged his shy date straight to a local train and off to Ikebukuro's busy shopping streets.

To say the young nurse was terrified was an understatement. He was shaking. Too many people, too little space.

Karamatsu's favourite shops happened to be around the area. He would've otherwise never dragged the man along. He and Ikebukuro just seemed to share the same style.

"Are you alright? You look kinda pale", Karamatsu asked the shaking man, "We're almost there. You can do it."

The young man laughed nervously, "Haha, I bet you thought a nurse wouldn't have this much anxiety."

"Not at all. We're all different", Karamatsu smiled reassuringly, "You have a professional mode or something you switch on with patients?"

"Something like that", the nurse returned the smile, "I guess helping people calms me down."

"That's good then. You're a great nurse. I bet my brother would've loved having you as his nurse."

"How is he doing by the way, your brother?"

Karamatsu smiled fondly, "He's like a small sunshine. Worries about us more than himself."

"But I bet the situation has been tough for him, too", the nurse pointed out.

"Yeah, I wish he'd talk to us. He has too many secrets."

"I guess we're alike, I and your brother. We both suck at talking to other people", the nurse joked, "I hope he finds the courage to tell you guys. I bet he's hurting."

"I hope so, too", Karamatsu mumbled.

The two had entered into a smaller, quieter street. It was outlined by flamboyant-looking shops.

The young nurse couldn't decide which sparkled more, the clothes on the shops' windows or the signs flashing in all neon colors.

Karamatsu made his way towards a smaller shop, "Let's start here. I'm friends with the manager. I bet we could get some awesome deals."

The door opened with a jingle as the two stepped into the shop.

As soon as they had entered, a short, dapper man came rushing towards them, "Karamatsu, my boy! How long has it been? A week? Two perhaps? I was afraid something had happened to you!"

The young nurse watched the interaction in awkward silence. He was beginning to slightly doubt this whole shopping thing.

"Manager, hello! It has surely been a while!" Karamatsu exclaimed as he was crushed into a hug sure to break a couple of bones, "I brought you a new customer. He's a friend of mine, so behave yourself."

The manager's gaze shifted to the quivering form of the nurse, "Truly splendid! What a figure!"

"Do you have anything that would fit him? He wants to dress to impress, if you know what I mean", Karamatsu winked.

"Of course! I actually happen to have some new clothes. I'm sure they'd fit him perfectly. Just let me go get them", the little man sang as he retreated into a small, almost cave-looking room.

Karamatsu put his hand onto the nurse's shoulder, "If you don't like something, just say. He won't bite."

"O-Okay."

When the manager returned, he had a huge pile of clothes with him. The tiny man was hardly visible from under them all.

"I got all kinds of styles since he's still trying to find his", he informed placing the pile onto a counter, "I spared the sparkles. You said he worked as a nurse so I thought those wouldn't do any good. A cleanness hazard or something I bet."

Karamatsu gazed the pile in excitement, "Alright, thank you. We'll try these on and tell you how it went."

The young nurse was once again dragged away. This time into a fitting room.

"As the manager said, the sequin is a bit too much for you. I did like the vintage suits though", Karamatsu mulled over the many clothes they had tried on.

Karamatsu's date was feeling overwhelmed. He bet no one had ever seen him naked let alone undress him. Karamatsu had done both and in record time.

"I-I quite liked the suits, too. They're not too flashy yet they steal your gaze", the nurse panted. Trying on clothes was a sport believe it or not.

"Then it's decided! We'll take those three suits you liked the best", Karamatsu cheered clapping his hands together, "Do you need any pants to go with them? How about accessories?"

"Didn't the manager say he had matching ones behind the counter? No, no accessories."

"I'll go get those. You need to try which size looks the best on you."

In the end the two bought three suits for the nurse and new pair of pants for Karamatsu.

The pants were golden glitter. The purchase totally wasn't influenced by a certain fifth brother.

As Karamatsu had said, the three managed to make a deal to get around ten percent off of their purchase. The manager knew how tight money was in Karamatsu's family and he had given him discounts before. It had kind of become their thing to bargain.

The nurse was, of course, content but the two others seemed even happier. 'Nice-looking front, even better-looking back' they smirked to each other. The young man blushed.

Karamatsu and his date ended their adventures in yet another café.

They ordered something to eat as they were both starving. A long evening of trying on clothes had left the two men knackered and quite ready sit their bums down.

Luckily they found a café still offering all-you-can-eat lunch. They'd eat it empty.

"We really went all-out today, didn't we?" the young nurse laughed. He had loosened up somewhere during the day and was now talking with Karamatsu without even stuttering.

"Yeah. Say, will you wear those to work tomorrow?" Karamatsu asked, "Don't you have your nurse clothes on thought? Shouldn't we have bought you a new pair of shoes, too?"

"Yes we have. I thought that I'd wow my crush after work or something", the nurse blushed, "I guess the shoes would've worked but when you're a nurse, simple white slippers work the best."

"Of course. I didn't think it that way. The most comfortable ones are the best when doing work standing up."

The nurse laughed, "But maybe I'll think about it. I'll make sure to call you if I change my mind."

"Alright, I'll be waiting."

The two brothers, Osomatsu and Ichimatsu, were still sleeping. Such sloths. Well, to be fair they did do a lot of work.

"So your brother got fired?" Jyushi had told Granny about Osomatsu and what was happening with him. She had, of course, gotten worried.

"Yeah, he began smoking, too. He had promised to quit."

"Hmm. That isn't healthy at all."

Jyushi nodded in agreement, "If he only could get a job."

Granny was lost in thought for a moment until her face suddenly brightened, "He could work for me!"

"Really?!" Jyushi was surprised. Granny wasn't one to hire people that easily.

"Of course! I've been getting more and more customers lately and it would benefit us all if he was there to help", Granny explained, "If it's a Matsuno we're talking about, I'll hire him."

Granny had really fallen for the sixtruplets during this short time they had known each other.

"Great! He always praises your food, so working here will be like a dream come true."

Granny laughed, "We need to make sure he remembers he's here to work, not to browse."

"Yeah, that wouldn't be good for the business. He'd eat everything if he could", Jyushi chuckled.

The two sleepyheads woke up to the smell of fresh buns Granny served Jyushi.

"Food?" okay, it was Osomatsu who woke up to the smell and woke up the fourth when stepping on him.

"Good morning!" Jyushi smiled face full of freshly-baked bun, "Did you sleep well?"

"FOOD!" Osomatsu threw himself onto the table without even answering his little brother.

Granny managed to save the tea and cups. A second later and they would've been crushed under the ravenous mass known as the oldest Matsuno.

Ichimatsu joined the three and Batter sitting around the table. He either didn't care or notice the mess as he simply took a bun and bit into it.

"Yeah, I slept well", he mumbled petting Batter who had jumped on his knees, "Good boy."

Osomatsu ate like he hadn't had food in ages, "This is so good! Hallelujah, fresh food!"

Granny just laughed like Jyushi did, too.

After Osomatsu's stomach seemed to be somewhat full again Granny opened her mouth, "I heard you got fired. Is that correct?"

Osomatsu almost dropped the bun he was chewing on, "Who told you that?"

Jyushi was avoiding his big brother's gaze, sweating nervously.

Ichimatsu was staring at the two, "It's not that surprising if you ask me."

An awkward silence descended over the group. Batter's purring was the only noise to be heard.

Jyushimatsu began to swing around once again as he was stressed out by the situation. Ichi stopped him by grabbing his shoulders firmly lifting the little brother to sit on his lap.

"I and Jyushi talked and I've decided to hire you!" Granny finally exclaimed.

Osomatsu had been mad at his little brother for spilling the beans but now he was dumbfounded, "Huh?! What?!"

Ichimatsu looked shocked, too, and even stopped massaging Jyushi's shoulders. He had been doing that to relieve the tension.

Granny sighed, "You", she pointed at Osomatsu, "Work. For. Me."

Jyushi added the rest of the pantomime. At least Osomatsu thought that the crazy hand-swinging must've meant 'to work' and 'for Granny'.

"But why?" Osomatsu couldn't help but ask, "You've just heard that I got fired and now you're offering me a job! I don't get it! You don't know me."

The oldest was getting agitated. He didn't want anyone's pity.

Granny smiled as she took a sip from her cup, "You're Osomatsu, Jyushi's oldest brother. I don't need to know anything else. I've heard enough from Jyushi."

Osomatsu gazed at the fifth brother who was beginning to calm down on Ichi's lap. He was currently trying to pet Batter, guided by Ichi.

"Jyushi, what have you been telling her?" the oldest suddenly asked. He sounded mad.

"Hmmm… I told her that we played basketball!" Jyushi smiled.

"That's not it!" Osomatsu suddenly screamed, "Did you tell her to hire me?! I don't need your pity god damn it!"

Jyushi wasn't used to Osomatsu being mad and he quickly stood up, looking scared and left the room with a slam of a door.

Granny was getting a headache from this all, "Is this how you act towards a brother trying to help?"

"Huh?" Osomatsu's rage was fading now that he was beginning to grasp the situation.

Ichimatsu had ran after their little brother in panic, Batter hot in his tail.

"Jyushimatsu would never ask me to hire anyone! He knows very well I don't hire new people", Granny raged, "It was my decision and my decision alone to hire you. Is this how you thank me?!"

Osomatsu was feeling really bad, "I-I didn't know. I honestly had no idea."

Granny sighed as she sat back down, "You don't need to tell me anything. Go apologize to him."

"Of course", Osomatsu bowed and left the room running to where he had seen Ichi go.

Osomatsu ran to the hallway listening for any sounds.

Then he heard a pitter patter of feet and a meow.

It was Batter and he didn't look happy. His ears were pressed to his head and his tail was swinging back and forth wildly.

Osomatsu crouched down to pet the cat who only growled, "I guess I screwed up big time, huh?"

Batter swatted his hand away.

"I want to apologize. Where is he?"

The feline seemed to contemplate then he finally turned to walk away.

Osomatsu followed close behind.

Batter escorted him to the closed shop illuminated by the streetlamps outside.

From the hallway he could already hear his little brother's crying voice and Ichi's low voice hushing him telling him everything was alright. Osomatsu should've been the one comforting his little brother. He really sucked at being a big brother.

Osomatsu stepped into the shop quietly. He didn't really know what to say.

When he finally had the courage to lift his gaze, he saw Jyushi sitting in the far corner behind the counter. Ichimatsu hadn't managed to squeeze himself close enough to hug his little brother so he was trying to coax him out.

Jyushimatsu, the little sunshine, had his face hidden behind his long hoodie sleeves. They were wet with tears.

Osomatsu could hear his little brother blaming himself for everything. 'If he just had kept his mouth shut' and 'If he had just watched where he was going'.

The oldest had had enough, "Jyushimatsu? Can I talk to you for a minute?"

Ichimatsu turned to glare at him the moment Osomatsu opened his mouth. He did make way for him though.

Osomatsu sat in front of his crying brother and took hold of his hands, "Look at me."

Jyushi slowly lifted his gaze. His eyes were puffy and red from all the crying.

"I screwed up really big this time", Osomatsu sighed, "I'm sorry. I don't know what came over me."

When his little brother only nodded, Osomatsu grabbed him for a hug, "I'm sorry. I can never do anything right."

Jyushi hugged his big brother back much to his surprise, "I'm sorry, too."

"There's no need for you to be."

Jyushi put his head on Osomatsu's shoulder, "I'm sorry for making you mad. I just tried to help."

"Don't say a thing. It's not your fault."

Osomatsu could feel his shoulder getting wet, "I'm sorry I'm such a burden to you all."

Ichimatsu joined the hug at this point.

Osomatsu began petting Jyushi's back, "You're not a burden. You're my little brother, our sunshine. There's no way you'd ever burden us."

Ichimatsu snuggled his head to Jyushi's cheek, "It's normal for brothers to fight every once in a while. I mean, Choro fights with Osomatsu all the time."

Osomatsu huffed, "That bastards has it coming."

Jyushi cracked a smile at that. Choromatsu was the nagging mother hen type.

Ichimatsu smiled when seeing his little brother smile, "The point is, we all love you no matter what. We're brothers."

"I'm you, you're me. We're the six same faces", Osomatsu smiled fondly.

Jyushi smiled more widely and hugged his brothers back, "Hm!"

The three stayed in their hugging formation until Jyushi tired himself out and fell asleep.

"You should go say something to Granny, too", Ichimatsu mumbled watching over his sleeping little brother.

Batter had joined them and was lying right next to Jyushi's head. He too, watching.

Osomatsu nodded in understanding and exited the room.

Granny had stayed right where she was the whole time. The tea had long ago gone cold but she didn't care. Her gaze was fixed to her garden and the sunflowers she had planted with Jyushimatsu.

Osomatsu suddenly slammed the door open and threw himself onto the floor, "I'm sorry! Please, let me work!"

Granny didn't even turn her head to look at him, "Do you promise something like that will never happen again?"

"Yes! I'd swallow a thousand needles!" Osomatsu was referring to a Japanese pinky promise, where the liar would need to swallow a thousand needles as punishment.

Granny smiled, "You begin tomorrow. Now go and take Jyushimatsu home with you."

Osomatsu bowed before exiting the door, "Thank you!"

Ichimatsu carried their sleeping brother home.

Osomatsu was quiet the whole journey. He didn't even bicker about Pachinko when they went past their usual place.

When arriving back home, the three brothers didn't mention anything about what had just occurred at Granny's place.

They had simply told that Jyushi had gotten tired and decided to take a little nap.

The two brothers home seemed to buy the story.

Choromatsu and Todomatsu had already come back from work and were waiting for them with dinner ready. Karamatsu had left a note saying he had something to do and would be home late. He told them to eat without him.

It was hotpot for dinner, everyone's favorite. Made by Choromatsu.

Jyushimatsu acted like nothing had happened and cheered loudly when the food was brought to the table. He had woken up quickly after arriving home.

Osomatsu was still a bit quieter than usual but cracked a smile whenever his little brother made a lame joke about something.

Jyushi had seriously already forgiven him. He wasn't one to hold grudges, so Osomatsu should've known.

The food was soon gone and the five brothers satisfied.

Karamatsu came back home in about an hour, after which the brothers tried to guess where he had been.

Karmatsu told them the whole story about the nurse and his crush.

Karamatsu had proudly presented his newest pair of pants to his brothers as a proof of his story. They had only laughed. Of course they believed him. They just loved to tease him.

Jyushi had told him later that day that he loved the pants. They made Karamatsu look like a super hero.

When the brothers finally decided it was time for bed, they all crammed into the small bathroom to brush their teeth.

While the six were brushing their teeth, Jyushimatsu whispered to Osomatsu, "Six same faces."

Osomatsu looked into the bathroom mirror and laughed, "Yeah, all same."

Jyushi smiled and so did Osomatsu.

The next morning came with a rainy weather and porridge for breakfast.

Choromatsu had argued with Osomatsu, who had told him porridge would never get him stomach full. Choromatsu told him that porridge had a lot of carbohydrates and would keep him full for a long time to which Osomatsu had only pouted.

After breakfast Osomatsu and Jyushimatsu were off to work alongside Totty and Choromatsu.

Ichimatsu decided to tag along for the pair's first day.

Karamatsu was left home to sleep once again.

When the five went separate ways, Totty wished Jyushi good luck and told him to have fun.

Choromatsu shot a worried glance towards the oldest who was beaming with excitement.

Osomatsu was actually wearing a dress shirt. He was serious about this.

"Good morning!" Jyushi cheered as he opened the shop's door.

Granny emerged from behind the counter and Batter ran to greet the guests from the main building.

"Good morning Jyushi! Ready to work?" she asked the little sunshine.

"Yeah!" both Jyushi and Osomatsu cheered.

Ichimatsu decided he'd sit outside the shop and observe.

There were some tables with parasols outside the shop for the customers. Ichimatsu made his base there.

The day is filled with customers and, for Ichi's nuisance, their dogs.

Since the sixtruplets all shared the same smell, the dogs came and greeted him like he was the fifth brother.

As a cat person, Ichimatsu is more than distressed by their presence. Especially Gladiator the Rottweiler intimidated him. He seemed friendly enough but Ichi wasn't going to risk it.

Osomatsu was handling the situation very well. He was chatting with the old ladies and joking with the older men.

The customers were of course happy that Jyushi was back but Osomatsu also got his fair share of attention.

Old ladies were, after all, into young men bit good-looking backsides. They congratulated Granny many times for hiring such fine gentlemen.

When the shift was finally over, the four were exhausted.

Granny didn't know how but the two brothers had somehow managed to get themselves full of flour which only seemed to amuse them even more. They hadn't even touched any dough or baked a thing yet still they managed to get as dirty as Granny herself.

The four sat inside the shop drinking some lemonade and chatting.

Ichi was telling them how the dogs had attacked him, to which they all laughed. Ichi's distress was visible. He was holding Batter in his arms petting him furiously.

"So, how was your first day at work?" Granny asked Osomatsu who was in the middle of laughing at some joke Jyushimatsu had made.

"It was great! Of course I wish the ladies were a bit more my age and that the men would understand my jokes but I guess I have to endure", Osomatsu smirked.

Granny laughed, "You need to get used to that, my boy. My regulars are all over 40."

"Bummer", Osomatsu feigned grief.

All four laughed, even Ichimatsu.

The three brother soon had to leave, since Jyushimatsu was in charge of tonight's dinner.

Ichimatsu would, of course, help him but Jyushi would get to pick out the ingredients.

"What will we be having tonight, chef Jyushi?" Osomatsu asked his smiling younger brother who was browsing through the local super market's vegetable section.

"Cake! To celebrate Osomatsu's first day!" Jyushi cheered picking up a random carrot and putting it in their shopping cart.

Ichi looked at the carrot, "Anything else? We need something salty, too."

Jyushi was now standing in front of the potatoes, "Hmm… Vegetable cake!"

A Jyushi-like solution.

"How about a sandwich cake?" Osomatsu suggested thinking of the possible solutions Jyushi himself would come up with.

Ichi nodded, "Yeah, that would work."

"Sandwich cake!" Jyushi exclaimed as he raced the cart to the bread aisle.

The two big brothers sighed as they followed him.

In the end, the three managed to buy the ingredients for a sandwich cake.

Ichi did need to inform Jyushi a couple of times that carrots, pineapples and sardines weren't needed to make the cake among many other food items Jyushi had tried to put in their cart.

Osomatsu had only laughed and told Ichi to let their little brother at least buy the carrots. He could chew them for a snack or something.

Buying the ingredients had been the easy part, making the actual cake was going to be the challenge. Especially when a one-armed brother wanted to help with everything possible.

Ichi had to give Jyushi a dull butter knife. He would mash the tuna that was going to go in between the bread layers.

Jyushi had enjoyed his mission, maybe a bit too much. The tuna was demolished into a greyish paste in a matter of minutes after which Jyushi was asking if he could do anything else.

Ultimately, Ichimatsu gave both Jyushi and Osomatsu a carrot and told them to chew on them while he handled the cooking.

Osomatsu had agreed right away and retreated somewhere to enjoy his treat while Jyushi stayed behind to hover over Ichi watching his every move.

"And it's done", Ichi exclaimed as he put the last layer of bread on the pile, "A sandwich cake."

"Ooh!" Jyushi clapped his hands, "A healthy cake!"

Karamatsu woke up.

Totty and Choromatsu arrived.

"Surprise!" Jyushi screamed as he revealed tonight's dinner, "It' a cake!"

Totty was up and taking pictures of the rare sight.

Choromatsu stared at the creation in wonder.

Karamatsu was ready with a knife eager to cut the cake.

"Karamatsu, wait!" Jyushimatsu stopped the second brother, "Osomatsu takes the first piece!"

"Why?" Karamatsu mumbled as his stomach growled.

"Because it's his big day!" Jyushi told him like he had been stupid to even ask.

Totty stopped his photographing, "How come?"

"It was Osomatsu's first day working at Granny's!"

Osomatsu laughed nervously.

Choromatsu was glaring him, "Didn't you already have a job?"

"Got fired!" Osomatsu quickly told him before focusing his attention to the cake.

"Osomatsu!"

"The boss was stupid! His mustache looked funny, too!"

"That's no excuse!"

The fight continued on throughout the whole dinner.

Choromatsu only seemed to accept his loss when he lowered his head onto his pillow to go to sleep.

Osomatsu was laughing all the way. He guessed beer and gambling weren't needed to have fun after all.


	18. Chapter 18: Cracks in the Mirror

Ichimatsu felt something tickling his nose in the middle of the night.

First he tried to swat whatever it was away. He though soon realized it was a paw and it wasn't tickling him but trying to wake him up.

Ichi bolted up to see ESP Kitty sitting next to his pillow. The fact that the cat had woken him up meant that his little brother was having some sort of trouble.

As soon as the cat had managed to wake his owner up, he began meowing and circling. Having circled a full round the cat made his way to sit on Jyushi's pillow which was empty.

Ichi, of course, got really anxious. Then he noticed a lump under the blanket and sighed in relief.

The fourth brother made his way to sit next to Jyushi and lifted up the blanket, "Jyushi? Is everything alright?"

Jyushimatsu was curled up at the foot of the futon. He was holding his left arm and whimpering in pain.

Ichi counted one plus one and came to a conclusion, "Is you hand hurting? How bad?"

Jyushi only nodded curling tighter when ESP Kitty lied next to him. He tried to comfort the brother. The feline could sense pain and he knew this man was in a lot of it.

"Do you want some pain meds?" Ichi tried coaxing his little brother out of bed, "Let's go downstairs. I'll make you something."

Finally, Jyushi slowly stood up.

Leaning to his big brother the two carefully make their way downstairs. ESP Kitty followed, chirping in worry.

To the duo's surprise, Karamatsu was in the kitchen apparently drinking some coffee. He looked as surprised though, seeing his little brothers downstairs in the middle of the night.

Karamatsu stood up as soon as he saw the state the fifth brother was in, "Is everything okay? Should I make something?"

Ichimatsu sat Jyushi down before answering, "Jyushi's hand is hurting real bad. He needs pain killers."

Karamatsu was already rummaging the cupboard searching for the meds, "How bad is it? Out of ten."

Jyushi's eyes were shut in pain as he muttered, "Eight."

"But why? Didn't you take your meds before going to sleep?" Karamatsu had found the pain meds and now he was trying to find the strongest one.

"I bet the hand wasn't hurting as much when we were going to sleep. Choromatsu must've only given him the regular ones, no extra", Ichi explained, "Jyushi must've slept in a position that just aggravated the pain."

Karamatsu nodded in understanding. Jyushi did have the weirdest sleeping positions after all.

"I'll make some hot cocoa", he muttered after giving Ichi the right meds.

"Hmm", Jyushi mumbled. He seemed to like the idea.

Ichi gave his younger brother the meds with a glass of water, "They should begin working in about an hour. Do you want to lie down and wait?"

Jyushi nodded, "Yeah."

At least he was being vocal.

Ichi escorted Jyushi to the living room and lied him down onto the sofa. He put a duvet on his little brother and fetched some extra pillows to support the injured hand.

Ichi sat down next to the sofa to watch over Jyushi and monitor his pain levels. ESP Kitty jumped onto one of the arms of the sofa. He too, watching over the brother.

Karamatsu entered the room with two mugs of hot cocoa. He sat down next to Ichimatsu and offered him one of the mugs.

"For you", he said as he stuck a straw to the other mug offering it for Jyushi to drink, "Be careful, it's hot."

Jyushi took a careful sip smiling when the taste hit his tongue, "Yummy."

"Hmm", Ichi agreed taking a big gulp out of his mug.

"Only the best for you, brothers", Karamatsu smiled proudly.

Ichimatsu tsk'ed, "By the way, what are you doing here? Aren't you supposed to be working?"

"The boss called letting us know that we'd be starting a bit later. A last minute change it seems. I'll be leaving soon."

"Okay."

After about half an hour, the medicine seemed to finally kick in. It was one of those tiring ones so Jyushi fell asleep soon after.

Ichi followed suit.

Karamatsu took out a blanket and threw it on the fourth brother. He also put a pillow under his head.

"I'll be off now, brothers. Take care", the second oldest whispered before shutting the door behind him.

The three brothers still sleeping upstairs were terrified to find two extra spaces empty in the morning.

"Where's Jyushi?" Totty was panicking, even looking under the pillows in search of his brother.

"Probably with Ichi", Choromatsu pointed out, "His spot is empty. ESP Kitty is gone, too."

The three rushed downstairs and in the living room.

Seeing Jyushi sleeping on the sofa and Ichi with him, the three let out a relieved sigh. The two were alright.

ESP Kitty purred his good mornings from on top of an arm rest.

"Well, I'm off to check if Karamatsu has made any breakfast for us", Choromatsu told them.

It had been Karamatsu's turn to make breakfast and he had reassured the brothers he'd make some even though he had a night shift. And when Choromatsu checked the fridge, there was a neat row of rice balls wrapped in plastic wrap and cut vegetables on five plates. A note attached to them said, 'Good morning! Enjoy your meal, brothers.'

Choromatsu took out the plates of food and carried them to the table, "Here we go, eat up."

Karamatsu had made sure to mark everyone's portion.

There was a colored toothpick stuck onto every pile of rice balls. Pink was for Todomatsu, green was for Choromatsu and so on.

Osomatsu's portion was clearly a bit bigger than everyone else's.

There were also a wide assortment of different fruits and vegetables on each plate. Totty had strawberries and a sliced apple on his plate while Jyushi had carrots and some mango on his.

Ichi woke up first yawning loudly.

"Morning!" Osomatsu cheered munching on his breakfast, "A weird place to sleep you two have."

"Care to explain?" Choromatsu asked.

Ichi smacked his lips a couple times and stretched his muscles, "Jyushi's hand began hurting in the middle of the night. We came downstairs to get some medicine and fell asleep."

"Alright", Choromatsu sighed, he was getting a headache, "But please, tell us next time."

"Okay", Ichi mumbled as he sat down to eat his breakfast.

He put Jyushi's plate next to the sofa and gently poked his sleeping brother's nose.

That got Jyushi awake, "Huh? Morning?"

"Yes, there's your breakfast", Ichi told him.

Jyushi took the plate to his lap and began munching the carrots. The brothers would've normally told him to eat next to the table but they just didn't have the heart to do so today.

"Totty, can I get a strawberry?" Jyushi asked the youngest brother who happily complied throwing one right into Jyushi's mouth.

Totty got a piece of mango in return.

After breakfast, Jyushi helped Choromatsu wash the dishes.

Ichimatsu in the living room told the two remaining brothers the details of the last night.

"We really should do something fun together", Totty mumbled, "As brothers."

Osomatsu agreed, "There has been way too much going on lately. We all need a break."

Ichi nodded, "But do we have the money?"

The three were quiet.

"We'll take a loan if necessary!" Totty huffed, "We need a vacation. The thing in the morning was a prime example why. We panicked before even thinking the whole situation through and just ran downstairs."

Ichi and Osomatsu were both nodding in agreement when Jyushi stuck his head into the room, "Osomatsu, we need to go to work."

Osomatsu stood up and hurried after the fifth, "I'm coming!"

Ichimatsu stood up, too, "I'm off to work, too."

"Have fun. I and Choromatsu have a later morning today", Totty waved to his brothers.

"There they go", Choromatsu smiled as he entered the room drying his hands.

"Yeah. Such hard workers", Totty agreed.

The two sat by the table drinking some coffee. The other brothers, except Karamatsu, didn't drink coffee at all or they added a ton of milk and sugar into it. The two needed it to function.

"How's the café?" Choromatsu asked the youngest.

"Normal. The evenings are always busy", Totty replied, "Actually, my boss offered me a raise and a transfer to central Tokyo the other day."

"Oh that sounds great! Did you take it?"

"I haven't replied yet. I do want to earn more but I don't want to leave you guys!"

"Would you need to move? The trains travel quite well these days."

"True, but it would take so much time and I don't like the rush hour at all. I want to spend time with Jyushi and the others. I mean, of course I want to be independent but working that far away sounds kinda tough to me."

Choromatsu could see his little brother was stressed, "Couldn't you just ask for a raise and refuse the transfer."

"I could try but I'm not sure if I'm ready to take the risk of him getting upset with me."

"Wasn't he the understanding one?"

"Yeah. Do you think he'd understand this?"

"I bet he would. Just explain the situation to him. You don't want to transfer because your brothers couldn't follow you. Of course, Tokyo sounds nice but we don't have the money."

Totty sighed, his big brother was right, "I'll talk to him today. I hope he understands."

"Let's hope so. Don't talk about this with the others. We'll figure this out on our own", Choromatsu smiled, "Should we get going?"

"Yeah", Todomatsu stood up and the two left.

As Choromatsu was locking the door, he suddenly sighed loudly, "I don't want to meet my boss though. Yours might be understanding but mine is a total ass."

Todomatsu knew his brother's boss was giving him a hard time at work. Choromatsu was often stuck working overtime for up to four hours.

"What did he do this time?" Totty sweat dropped.

"He gave me this huge pile of papers to go through", Choromatsu rubbed his temples, "He expects me to finish them today."

"Poor you. I actually talked with Osomatsu and Ichimatsu when you were washing the dishes. We all thought that we need a vacation. We're way too stressed."

Choromatsu nodded, "Very true. I guess we might be able to afford it but our piggybank will have to go on a serious diet. He'll be empty for a while."

"Should I look up possible options? Something everyone would like."

"Do that, I'll check if I can find any good deals online."

"Alright, I'll report to you then. Let's keep this a secret from Jyushi. He'll be so happy."

"I'll inform the others. Make sure they don't spill the beans."

"Alright. Have fun!" Totty waved his big brother as they parted ways.

"I'll try my best!" Choromatsu smirked.

Osomatsu and Jyushimatsu were already busy with work.

Osomatsu was proving, once again, that he really wasn't the best worker possible.

The morning had gone well enough, so Granny had gone to bake a new batch of her famous buns. When she came back though, the place was a total chaos.

Granny didn't really know how it all had happened and to be honest she couldn't really care.

"Boys, what is this?" she asked the two brothers.

It was like asking two dogs a question. One of them was guilty, the other not.

Both brothers looked at each other, then Granny.

After that they pointed at each other both looking just as guilty.

"Jyushi, was it you?" Granny asked the younger brother with a serious tone.

Jyushi shook his head.

Granny knew Jyushi was really bad at lying so he didn't do it. Granny would've seen through his lie immediately.

"Osomatsu?" she turned to face the oldest brother.

The oldest scratched his head, looking embarrassed.

Granny sighed, "How?"

"So", Osomatsu began, "I was serving this very lovely old lady."

Sounds normal enough. Didn't really explain the two destroyed tables though.

"She had a dog with her, really big. Apparently it had really bad separation anxiety so it decided to join its owner."

Jyushi nodded, "She was huge! The dog."

"So the dog just came in and did this all?" Granny was tapping her foot.

"Osomatsu tried to catch her", Jyushi told her, "They had a great game of tag!"

"Y-Yeah, we did!" Osomatsu laughed nervously.

"Come meet me after the shift is over", Granny waved her hand, "Let's clean this up."

The shift was luckily uneventful after Osomatsu's little game of tag.

The oldest brother wasn't allowed to serve the customers for the rest of the day. He carried and packed bread instead. Granny watched him like a hawk.

Later, Granny made tea like always and the tree sat down in the living room.

Batter sat on Jyushi's lap trying to get a taste of the hot beverage.

"I guess you're regretting you decision already", Osomatsu began, "Trust me, you're not the first one."

Granny sighed, "I promised you I'd give you a chance. I need the help, too."

Jyushi lifted his left arm up wriggling the fingers a bit. The cast didn't allow much movement besides that.

"Okay, okay I get it", Osomatsu assured Jyushi who put his hand back on his lap, "Will you give me another chance?"

"Do I have any other choice? I trust you brothers, maybe too much."

Osomatsu bowed his head, "Thank you. When Jyushi's hand heals and he is able to work full power again I'll leave. I'm not fit for this job and I admit it."

"At least you're being honest", Granny smiled offering him a piece of a cake they were having.

"That's my strong point! I know my weaknesses."

Jyushi cracked a smile at that.

The second shift went much better.

There were no over-excited dogs present this time much to Osomatsu's relief.

Osomatsu was even allowed to serve the customers and not just handle bread.

He did suck at operating the cash register. Counting the prizes in his head which was the second option didn't work well with him either.

Granny usually handled the money but today she was too busy making new products.

She asked Jyushi to help his brother the best he could. Sadly, he wasn't the best when it came to handling money either.

A ton of customers and baked goods later, the second shift was finally over.

Osomatsu was tired but Jyushi would've still liked to go on.

Granny's back was aching once again and she asked the two brothers to take care of the cleaning. She sat on one of the chairs in the shop guiding the two in their mission.

"Osomatsu, don't wipe the dust on the floor", Granny told Osomatsu, "Jyushi, don't brush the dirt under the mats. Use the dust pan."

Jyushi was mopping the floor while Osomatsu wiped the counters. Although they did attempt to begin a game of hockey of some sort, the two didn't destroy anything.

Granny was pleased with the results. She'd have to give the two some extra treats to take home.

Before the two brothers left, Osomatsu took Granny to the side to tell her something.

Granny still thought Osomatsu was trying to make up for what he had done before, "What is it this time?"

Osomatsu was reassuring her, "No, no. It's not that! It's something else. It has to do with Jyushi."

That got Granny's attention, "What about my Jyushi?"

"We brothers were thinking about going on a holiday. Jyushi doesn't know about it yet and I have to ask you to keep it a secret", Osomatsu explained.

"Sounds great. You six need a vacation."

"We are also going to include Jyushi in all kinds of things. He's been feeling a bit down lately maybe cause he thinks he's a burden to us", Osomatsu continued, "We want to show him we love him and want to be with him whatever happens."

Granny had tears in her eyes, "Hm. I agree. Let's show him the love he deserves."

"Of course!"

"And have fun on your vacation. Call me if you need anything."

"Got that!" Osomatsu gave her the thumbs up, "Jyushi, let's get going! It's my turn to make dinner!"

Granny smiled, she knew chaos was to ensue.

"All done!" Jyushi appeared to the doorway. He had been finishing up the cleanup.

"We'll see you later", Osomatsu waved as the two left.

"Bye bye!" Jyushi cheered waving his sleeves.

"See you two tomorrow!" Granny smiled.


	19. Chapter 19: UNO

**Hello! It's me, the author.**

 **I want to inform the ones reading this story here on that I have great notes on AO3. They explain many things like the use of meth in the previous chapters.**

 **Please pay me a visit and read the notes. The username is the same as I have in here.**

Osomatsu and Jyushi stopped by Chibita's food cart on their way home.

Chibita hadn't seen the fifth Matsuno since his accident.

He was already getting emotional, "Goddamnit you brothers! Always causing me worry!"

"Hi, Chibita!" Jyushi greeted the young man like nothing had ever happened, "How's the oden today?"

"It's just fine, normal... That's not the point damn it! How are you?!"

Jyushi tilted his head, "Me? I'm doing great. Me and Osomatsu just finished our shift."

"You idiots got a job?!" Chibita was straying off topic by Jyushi's laid back attitude, "No, no, no, that's not it either! How about the hand? Is it hurting?"

Jyushi lifted his left arm up a bit, "It hurts a bit but that's okay. It'll heal."

"Jyushi has his first visit to the physiotherapist's tomorrow", Osomatsu explained, "Ichimatsu will probably go with him or something."

"Heh, that's good to hear, damn it", Chibita laughed brushing his nose with the back of his hand, "Say, you guys want some oden?"

Osomatsu and Jyushi looked at each other for a good minute.

Osomatsu was a lazy cook and it was his turn to make dinner.

Conclusion, oden would do just great.

"We'll take some!" Osomatsu decided, "We'll eat at home so put in enough for everyone."

"Got that, goddamnit."

When Osomatsu wasn't watching, Chibita sneaked a stick of Oden to Jyushi who gobbled it instantly. There was a risk of the oldest getting jealous, so the exchange had to happen faster than you could even say 'oden'.

"Thanks man! Put it in our tap, will you?" Osomatsu waved as the two brothers were departing.

"Hey you! Come back here, damn it!" Chibita raged trying to catch the two with his short legs. It was useless, the brothers were gone with their unpaid food. To be honest, in a way, Chibita couldn't even care. He was happy to see Jyushi was doing fine.

"We got a ton!" Osomatsu laughed as the two brothers opened their house door and stepped in.

"Yeah!" Jyushi agreed, "We're home!"

"Welcome back", came a quiet reply from the living room.

Jyushi ran towards the noise, "Ichi! Did you already finish work?"

Ichi was petting ESP Kitty feeding him dried sardines, "Yeah, we had a calm day. There wasn't really anything to help with."

Jyushi nodded, "We got some oden! Chibita was doing great."

"Alright", Ichimatsu mumbled, "Karamatsu is upstairs sleeping if you want to wake him up."

"Okay!" Jyushi ran upstairs leaving Osomatsu to take care of the food.

"There he goes", Ichi mumbled as Osomatsu came to the room.

"Karamatsu is going to get the Octopus hold treatment", Osomatsu smiled sitting down.

"I bet he was expecting a cute girl or something", Ichimatsu smirked watching the oldest unpack the bags of food he had brought, "I want that one, those are my favorite."

Osomatsu looked at the box Ichi had claimed was his, "Eeh?! I wanted that one."

"First come first serve", Ichimatsu took the box licking his lips.

"Hmph!" Osomatsu pouted, "Then I'll take this one!"

"You go girl."

"Shut it!"

Choromatsu and Todomatsu came back at the same time.

Jyushi had managed to wake up Karamatsu by the time the two were sitting down with Osomatsu and Ichi.

Karamatsu was slightly cranky having been woken up with moves fit to the ring. He had had a lovely dream he was riding a bath tub off to the sunset. He was fairly certain there had been a fanclub cheering for him all the while.

"Karamatsu woke up!" Jyushi exclaimed when they, too, sat down with the rest.

Ichi gave his little brother a thumbs up, "Good job."

Karamatsu yawned, "Tell me, why baseball? Jyushi should be a WWE champion or something. He'd dominate the ring. "

"Dunno", Choromatsu shrugged.

Totty was, once again, showing Jyushi pictures, "I tried doing some latte art today. Look."

"Matsu!" Jyushi clapped his hands.

"Yeah, had to begin with something simple", Totty laughed, "I tried doing a ladybird, too."

"Ooh!"

"Come on, let's eat!" Osomatsu cried out, "I'm hungry!"

"Yeah, yeah", Choromatsu mumbled sharing the rest of the styrofoam boxes, "When wouldn't you be?"

"Bon appétit!" Osomatsu cheered diving in.

After dinner, the six brothers just lied around the room doing whatever.

"How was work?" Choromatsu asked the rest, "I did paperwork."

"Normal", Totty mumbled rummaging through one of the closets in the room, "The manager agreed by the way."

"Great."

"I bottle-fed our new kittens today", Ichimatsu told smiling slightly, "They were cute."

"Osomatsu had a game of tag!" Jyushi cheered lifting his hand up to the air.

"It was an accident", Osomatsu assured, "I already apologized."

Totty suddenly pulled out a box waving it to the five, "How about a game of UNO?"

"Yeah!" Jyushi liked the idea.

"No!" the three older brothers screamed, "Do you want to get someone killed?"

"Huh?" Totty really didn't get the point.

"Yeah, let's play", Ichimatsu smirked cracking his knuckles, "I'm good at this game."

"You only use the plus-cards!" Karamatsu pointed out huffing.

"Yes?" Ichi tried to look innocent. He played like a demon.

"Let's begin!" Totty announced as he dealt the cards.

"I don't want to!" Choromatsu screamed in desperation, "This game destroys families!"

"Yes?" Totty was using the puppy dog eyes.

"Nothing, let's begin."

Osomatsu played the first card, "Ta-dah! A red number one!"

"Ah, the irony", Totty and Choromatsu said in unison.

"Red number five", Karamatsu flipped the card onto the table trying to look cool.

Choromatsu sighed, there was no escaping this now, "Blue number five."

"Blue number two", Ichimatsu mumbled, "Why aren't there any purple cards?"

"Green number two!" Jyushi slammed the card to the table, "There are no purple cards?"

"Green number nine", Totty put the card down, "There are no pink ones either, so shut it!"

"There aren't?!" Jyushi exclaimed. He hadn't noticed, "Boo!"

The beginning was uneventful. They all had cards to play and everyone was happy with that.

Until Osomatsu was down to one card.

"Uno!" he shouted proud lifting the lone card up in the air.

All five pairs of eyes were on that one card and its owner.

The game was fucking on and Osomatsu was going to lose it.

Karamatsu winked.

Totty replied with a nod waving his cards like a fan.

Ichimatsu was radiating dark aura.

Choromatsu sighed. He hoped he wouldn't get run over by the three.

When Totty's turn came, he slammed a Skip card on top of the pile. He would've liked to play a Reverse but he didn't have one in the needed color.

'I have faith in you, Karamatsu', his glare told the second oldest who only fixed his sunglasses on his nose.

"For god's sake!" Osomatsu cursed.

On his turn, Karamatsu flipped a card onto the table. It was a Wild Draw Four.

"Yellow", Karamatsu smirked.

"Fuck you guys!" Osomatsu screamed, "I'm the oldest! I should win!"

"Don't even think about it", Totty smiled throwing in a card.

"Purple!" Jyushi slammed a Wild card onto the table.

Totty sighed, "Jyushi, there are no purple cards in the deck. Try again."

"Hmmm… Blue!"

"Good."

Choromatsu played his second last card he had without saying a thing.

"Choromatsu! You need to say 'Uno' when you're down to one card", Totty pointed out, "Draw two."

Osomatsu laughed, "Serves you right!"

After half an hour of random screaming Jyushi suddenly yelled, "Uno!"

"Whaaat?!" the Totty and Osomatsu were dumbfounded.

"Jyushi had many cards with the same number. Shuffle the cards better next time", Ichimatsu noted.

"Do something Ichimatsu!" Totty begged.

"I don't have anything", Ichi lied before playing a Reverse the next round, "But I hope you have, Totty."

Uno really was a game that could destroy families and end relationships.

In the Matsuno family, playing Uno meant the six brothers letting out their demons. Everyone wanted to win, at all cost.

Osomatsu was a gambler. He took enormous risks by doing dangerous moves in difficult situations.

Karamatsu tried to hold a poker face during the game. He was a good player even without one though.

Choromatsu was the seemingly mundane player. In reality he was constantly analyzing the situation in his head.

Ichimatsu was the demon when it came to playing a game like UNO. He didn't really care about winning. All he wanted was to see the others suffer.

Jyushimatsu won, if he won, with sheer luck. He did understand the rules of the game and he couldn't form intricate plans to take the others down. All he really wanted to do was have fun.

Todomatsu was the sneaky one, using the others as well as mind games to win.

The game was finally over after four excruciating hours.

The winner?

Choromatsu, because the ones that could plan against him forgot about him.

"Choromatsu won!" Jyushi hugged his big brother, "What is his prize?"

"Dirty", Osomatsu and Totty mumbled. They weren't good losers.

"I shall sing you a lullaby as-", Karamatsu began.

"Let's just go to sleep. I'm tired", Choromatsu yawned, "Let's say that's my prize."

"I'll try not to punch you in my sleep", Osomatsu laughed and patted his little brother's back.

"Thank you."

The six brothers dragged themselves upstairs to get ready to go to bed.

The bed needed to be taken out and there were also some teeth to be brushed.

"Pillow fight!" Jyushi screamed as he and Todomatsu were taking the huge mattress out.

Totty, of course, joined his big brother, "Little brothers versus big brothers!"

"Huh?" Ichimatsu got a pillow to the face, "Who said I'd join?"

"I did!" Jyushi laughed dodging a pillow from Osomatsu.

"Alright", the fourth sighed taking a battle stance, "Then I must join."

The Team Big Brothers were having difficulties. They were disadvantaged. Choromatsu hadn't joined their troops.

"Quit it you five!" Choromatsu raged, "I want to sleep!"

"Spoilsport", Totty and Osomatsu huffed.

Ihchimatsu threw a pillow straight to the third brother's face, "Bullseye."

"Ichi's good!" Jyushi cheered.

Ichimatsu did a mock bow thanking the audience for making the throw possible.

Totty and Karamatsu clapped their hands while Osomatsu rolled on the floor, laughing.

"Good one, Ichi!" the oldest wiped tears from his eyes.

Choromatsu would've had smoke coming from his ears if that was possible, "Sleep, you idiots!"

"Okay…" the five mumbled crawling under the blanket.

"I'm shutting the light", Totty told.

"Good night!" they wished to each other before falling asleep soon after.

The next day, Jyushimatsu was due to have his first physiotherapy session.

Ichimatsu and his little brother had made a deal. Ichi would come and get Jyushi from work and they'd go together.

Jyushi had wished for it since he was anxious about the whole thing. He didn't even have an idea what the whole thing would be about. The only thing he knew was that it would help him get better.

The hand hadn't luckily ached this night. He had had a good night's sleep and was ready for what the day would bring.

The brothers began with a breakfast. It was Ichimatsu's fried sardines and plain rice with miso soup.

Then they were off to work, like usual. Before the two parted ways Ichimatsu promised Jyushi he'd call him if something came up.

Osomatsu and Jyushi had a regular day at work.

Ichimatsu came to get Jyushi somewhere around noon, during the little brother's break between shifts.

"We should be back by the second shift", Ichi had promised Granny who only told them to take all the time they needed.

She wished Jyushi luck and told him to have fun.

Osomatsu saluted promising he'd take care of the things back at the shop, "I'll try my best!"

"We'll manage", Granny reassured the worried fifth brother, "Just go. Get better so that we can practice some pitches and hits."

"Really?! You'll train with me?" Jyushi was sparkling with excitement.

Granny winked, "I have some tricks up my sleeve. Dad taught me some things."

Jyushi was getting pumped. He was going to go to that physiotherapy and get better.

The therapist was a middle-aged woman.

She greeted the two enthusiastically and guided both into her room.

Ichimatsu liked her. She had allowed a family member to join the two in the room. All didn't.

"I got the radiographs. A traumatic fracture due to a traffic accident", the therapist read from a file, "You took quite a hit."

Jyushi nodded wriggling the fingers of the broken arm.

"Does the hand hurt?"

Jyushi shook his head.

"He had some trouble the day before yesterday. I woke up and gave him a pain killer", Ichimatsu explained glaring at Jyushi who had lied.

"The medicine helped with the pain?"

Jyushi nodded sweating under his big brother's gaze.

The older nodded, pleased that Jyushi was telling the truth.

"Have you been doing any of the moves your doctor gave you?"

"We've been doing them with Choromatsu. I'm good at them."

"Alright. How about the arm? Can you move it much?"

"Not really. The cast is in the way, too", Jyushi was kicking his legs.

"That's normal. A bone fracture takes about six to eight weeks to heal", the doctor smiled, "You shouldn't overdo it. It'll hinder the healing progress."

"Okay", Jyushi nodded, "When can I play baseball again?"

"That's a difficult question. You suffered some muscle damage, too, but the therapy should help with that."

The doctor thought for a while.

"It'll take at least three months maybe more before you're able to hit a homerun", she told him, "But I think you should be able to begin with something lighter in three months. Maybe you could practice your running for a while."

Jyushi agreed. Running was important, too.

"Today I'll just give you a massage. When one limb is out of use it disturbs the body's balance. Your shoulders must be stiff. After that I'll show you a few new moves you can do back home."

The woman guided Jyushi to lie down on a special bed. After that she began warming up the muscles by running her hands on Jyushi's back and shoulders.

Then she moved to the actual massage.

Jyushi seemed to really relax to the touch, Ichi observed. He must've felt way better with the tension gone.

It was difficult to get Jyushi to listen to the explanation the therapist was giving him about the new stretches. He was way too relaxed. Almost falling asleep, actually.

In the end, she explained them to Ichimatsu believing he'd be able to repeat them to the younger later.

Ichi guided Jyushi out of the room after thanking the woman. She told him they'd meet again the next week and reminded to do the stretches often enough.

Ichimatsu had gotten a text message from Choromatsu. He told that he and Totty had come to a conclusion. They were all able to get at least three days off. Choromatsu also had somehow managed to squeeze their budget so that they could afford the trip.

And where were they going? After thinking long and hard about it, Choromatsu and Totty decided Tokyo Disney Land would do best. They all needed some magic in their lives.

Ichimatsu smiled. He liked the idea.

Now they only had to keep the whole thing a secret from the fifth.

Ichi was able to get his little brother back to work halfway through the second shift.

Osomatsu had managed to keep the shop standing with the help of Granny.

Jyushi came back to a rush of customers all needing to be served. He had no time to rest. It was off to work.

Ichi wished him luck and returned to the shelter. He had some kitties to feed.

After the sixtruplets were all back home eating dinner, it was time to break the news to Jyushi.

Totty began, "Jyushi, we've been thinking."

"Hm?" Jyushi asked mouth full of food.

"We came to the conclusion that we all need a vacation", Choromatsu continued.

"Don't worry about the money! We've already taken care of that", Totty pointed out.

"When are we leaving?" Jyushi wondered. Of course he was ready to go but he was worried about the brothers' jobs.

"Tomorrow", Karamatsu revealed, "We need to pack our stuff tonight."

"Eeh?!" Jyushi knew his brothers were fast but he wasn't expecting this, "What about our jobs?"

"I called to Granny", Ichimatsu informed, "She totally agreed and told you to go have fun."

"She said an old friend of hers would help while we were gone. I met him during our break. He seemed really friendly and nice", Osomatsu told Jyushi reassuring him Granny would manage.

"Good", Jyushi smiled.

"Then what are we waiting for? We have stuff to pack", Choromatsu stood up looking serious.

He was really precise when it came to packing for vacations.

"Yeah!" the brothers cheered as they ran upstairs.

Ichi followed behind with a slower pace, "Can I take ESP Kitty with me?"


	20. Chapter 20: Magic for the Whole Family

"You don't need a bat in where we're going, Jyushi. Take it out", Choromatsu sighed telling his little brother who was trying to cram a baseball bat into a bag that was two or three sizes too small for it.

"Eeh?" Jyushi pouted.

"How about you just take a ball with you?" Ichimatsu suggested whilst folding his little brother's clothes which Jyushimatsu had simply thrown into his bag, "We could toss it to each other or something."

Jyushi rummaged through his baseball stuff for a good minute or two.

In the end, he poured a box of balls into his bag, "Done!"

"I said one, but whatever", Ichimatsu mumbled.

"And Totty! You don't need that many SD cards with you", Choromatsu moved to scold the youngest, "There's no way you're going to take that many pictures!"

"Try me", was the only reply he got as Totty packed the cards anyways, "There no way you're going to need that many clothes."

Choromatsu was packing his third shirt into his bag, alongside four pairs of socks, "Huh?"

"We'll be gone for three days not a week!" Totty screamed, "You're not going to change clothes every day, are you?"

"No, but I thought that just in case…"

Todomatsu only sighed.

The third brother really was a neat freak.

Karamatsu was asking Jyushi which pants he should take with him. Ichimatsu had simply stated that he'd burn the pants his big brother took with him, if they had any sequin in them.

"The gold ones! The gold ones!" Jyushi cheered. He really liked those.

"Alright, brother", Karamatsu huffed packing the pants.

"I seriously don't want to walk with you if you take those. It hurts", Totty mumbled eyeing the pants.

"Agreed", Ichi said.

Osomatsu, while the other's had almost packed all of their stuff, had one set of clothes in his red bag.

Choromatsu checked the bag, "Osomatsu, what is this?"

"My clothes?" Osomatsu didn't get the problem.

"That's not the point. Why are there so few?"

"Well, it's only three days."

Choromatsu sighed, "At least take another shirt with you. Plus some underpants."

"Okay."

Ichimatsu was putting a blanket in a carrying cage for pets. He had already packed his clothes and other necessary stuff, like cat food and toys.

"Are you going to take ESP Kitty to the shelter for when we are gone?" Choromatsu asked his brother.

"Huh? No. He's coming with us", Ichimatsu informed.

"There's no way he can come!" Choromatsu screamed again.

"Why?" Jyushi was pondering.

"He just can't! The place where we are staying doesn't allow pets."

Ichimatsu looked broken. He didn't know what he was going to do.

"Hmm…How about Granny?" Jyushi suggested, "ESP Kitty would surely love it there."

"True", Choromatsu agreed, "How does that sound, Ichi?"

Ichimatsu only nodded, already dialing Granny's number.

After ten minutes of speaking, Ichi ended the call, "She said yes. Batter was needing company, too."

"Yay!" Jyushimatsu clapped his hands in joy.

"She's also going to feed the strays", Ichi smiled.

"Great", Choromatsu was pleased. He knew his little brother could now relax. If the strays and ESP Kitty were to be left unfed and without love, Choromatsu was sure Ichi couldn't even sleep during their vacation not to mention have fun.

The two cats were going to have so much fun together.

Batter was a well-behaved cat and was sure to get along with Ichi's cat for sure.

Granny wouldn't be feeling lonely either.

The brothers left the following morning.

Jyushi had been too excited to sleep. He had rolled around and wriggled, trying to find a good position.

Jyushi had also constantly annoyed Choromatsu with his questions about the trip.

Choromatsu had it coming though, keeping secrets from the fifth brother wasn't the best idea. The five had decided already, so there was no going back now. Choromatsu wouldn't crack.

The brothers ate breakfast like normal.

After that they dragged their bags downstairs to leave.

Their first stop was at Granny's.

Ichimatsu was going to drop ESP Kitty off and Jyushi to hug her goodbye.

"Hello boys!" Granny exclaimed as she opened the door.

The early morning didn't seem to affect her at all. She was all smile and happiness as she opened the door.

"Granny!" Jyushi hugged the old woman, "We're going on a surprise holiday!"

"I heard, yeah. Are you going to have fun?"

"Yeah!"

"Great!" Granny laughed, "I made you boys some packed lunches for the trip."

Osomatsu's eyes were sparkling as he accepted the six boxes, "Thank you!"

Ichi offered Granny the cage, where ESP Kitty was sleeping.

"And here's my guest!" Granny took the cage from the fourth and looked inside, "He's going to have so much fun with Batter."

The said cat ran to the door at that exact moment meowing loudly. He had smelled the boys and his friend.

"Look who's here", Granny told Batter who was circling around Jyushi's feet.

Ichimatsu took his cat out of its carrier to cuddle it once more before leaving. He scratched behind the feline's ears, feeling the silky soft fur. He also made sure to admire the pink paw pads he had become so fond of. They were soft like a baby's bum.

After giving the cat a final pat to the head, Ichimatsu placed the cat down, "Behave."

ESP Kitty looked around for a moment before he saw Batter.

The two circled each other meowing and purring loudly before taking off.

"There they go", Ichi smiled. He was sure ESP Kitty was going to be just fine.

"Yeah, Batter had been waiting for his friend", Granny agreed, "Should I send you pictures?"

"Please do. You already have my number."

"I'll make sure to feed the strays, too."

Ichimatsu bowed alongside Jyushi, "Thank you so much. I'll be in debt."

"No, no!" Granny blushed, "Just promise me you'll have fun. That's enough for me."

"Then I'll make sure we do", Ichi smiled as the brothers waved the three goodbye.

Granny was waving back until she couldn't see the six anymore.

Batter and ESP Kitty looked out from the window meowing their goodbyes.

The train station was moderately empty this time of the day.

The people leaving to work had already left.

The only ones left on the station were the tardy or the ones beginning their work later.

Choromatsu and Karamatsu bought the tickets from a booth while the rest guarded their bags.

"The train leaves in ten minutes", Karamatsu informed the rest after buying the tickets, "Let's go find the right platform."

"Which one is it?" Osomatsu asked looking at a map on one of the station's walls.

Choromatsu looked at the tickets, "Platform three."

Osomatsu pointed the location of their goal to his little brother, "There. Think you can find it?"

"Yes!" Jyushi cheered running off with his little brother Todomatsu, "Number three!"

"Hey! No running!" Choromatsu roared. He feared for his brothers' safety.

Karamatsu sighed patting his brother's back, "Just let the little ones have their fun."

"But I'm worried", Choromatsu whined as the rest followed behind the two youngest, "What if they slip and fall?"

"They're not kids anymore, Choromatsu", Osomatsu reminded, "They're adults now."

"Say that to my face."

"True", Osomatsu laughed.

The brothers were sitting on the platform three in time.

The train would arrive in about five minutes.

Totty had found some stupid game on his phone and was showing Jyushimatsu how to play it.

The older seemed to really enjoy the game seeing he was focusing on his every move. His eyes were looking funny, almost catlike. It was his 'focused face'.

Choromatsu was looking at a map, marking something to it with a pencil.

Karamatsu would look at the map every now and again and point at something on it or comment on his little brother's markings.

"I think this route would be better", Karamatsu mumbled to Choromatsu pointing at something on the map.

Choromatsu checked where he was pointing, "But this one is more direct."

"Sightseeing, my brother, sightseeing."

"We might get lost or something. It's not worth the risk."

"Aren't you the one with the map?"

"Okay, okay, got it."

Osomatsu was sipping on a juice box leaning over to look at the two and the map, "I wanna go there first!"

"We need to find the inn first", Choromatsu sighed, "The owner is mom's old friend. Mom told they went to school at the same time."

"Cool", Karamatsu whistled, "Can't wait to meet her."

"I wonder if she's a good cook", Osomatsu pondered.

"Of course", Choromatsu laughed.

The train arrived on time and the brothers boarded it.

The train had three seats in a row so the three younger brothers sat on one side of the corridor while the older sat on the other.

Totty had the window seat but Jyushi was almost literally on his lap, looking out of the window of the speeding train.

On the other side, Osomatsu was the one sitting on the window seat. Karamatsu was in the middle while Choromatsu was ready to hand their tickets to the conductor if needed.

"Look Totty! A huge building!" Jyushi was jumping up and down on his seat pointing outside.

The train was speeding through Tokyo's central. The buildings were bigger than back home and Jyushi was baffled by their size.

Totty was pouting. It was impossible to take good pictures when on a moving train. All the pictures he took ended up blurry.

"Ichi, do you think Tokyo has its own stray cats?" Jyushi suddenly turned to ask his big brother who was spooked by the loud noise. He had been snoozing.

"Huh? Wha-? Yeah, of course", he replied with a yawn.

"I wonder if they like sardines", Jyushi pondered humming a merry tune while kicking his legs.

"I only have canned food with me", Ichi mumbled.

Choromatsu had decided that the brothers would jump off the train before the Disney Land's station.

The surprise would be ruined prematurely if the fifth was to see the decorations and signs on the station of the park.

They'd walk to the inn they were going to stay in and eat the packed lunches by Granny on the way there.

The stop where Choromatsu had decided they'd jump off would come next.

"Okay, we're going to exit on the next station", Choromatsu informed his brothers, "Check your belongings. Make sure you don't forget anything."

"Eeh? Already?" Jyushi was pouting. He liked experiencing the speed of the train.

"You'll get to see your surprise", Karamatsu pointed out hoping to cheer his little brother, "And we need to have a little picnic and eat our lunches, too."

"Picnic!" yeah, got him to cheer up.

When the train finally stopped on the brothers' station, Jyushi was the first one to jump off the train with his luggage.

Totty was the next, trying to make sure his brother wouldn't run off and get lost in his excitement.

"Stop! We need to look at the map!" Choromatsu tried to gather the six brothers and decide their next course of action.

All six were sitting on one bench on the station looking at the map.

"How about this park? It's close to the inn", Karamatsu suggested pointing his finger to a green spot on the map.

"Park!" Jyushi pointed the spot, too, "Picnic!"

"Good idea", Choromatsu agreed, "Let's go."

"Picnic! Picnic! Picnic!" Osomatsu and Jyushi were singing while the six exited the station to the busy street.

"Let's hope the food lasts until we get there", Ichi mumbled eyeing Osomatsu who was drooling over his own packed lunch.

"Yeah", Karamatsu agreed. The oldest was the one carrying all of their food, after all.

The park was fairly easy to find.

It wasn't a huge one but bigger than the ones the sixtruplets had near their home.

Dogs were apparently allowed in the park, seeing there were two or three dogs running after balls and frisbees.

Totty was already taking pictures, "Jyushi, let's take a picture together!"

"Alright!" Jyushi slammed himself to his little brother's side, "Like this?"

After recovering from the initial shock Totty instructed Jyushi how to take the perfect picture, "First you take a pose. Then you smile wide. Say cheese!"

"Cheese?" Jyushi didn't get the point. Why cheese?

The two took several pictures before the youngest was happy with the outcome, "Perfect!"

After checking the phone's screen, Jyushi was off running.

"A butterfly!" he was chasing a pink butterfly apparently trying to catch it.

One of the dogs thought that the young man was trying to play with her and took off after him barking in joy.

"Doggy!" Jyushi began running away from the dog laughing when the puppy would almost catch him.

"Be careful with your hand!" Ichimatsu tried to remind his little brother, keeping a safe distance from the three dogs who were now all chasing the fifth brother.

Choromatsu only sighed as he looked for a bench or a picnic table where the group could sit.

Karamatsu was speaking with the dog owners, who were amused but slightly worried that their dogs might get too rowdy with Jyushi.

The second brother assured them that their little brother had some experience with dogs and that he'd be just fine.

Osomatsu got some of the dogs' attention. He was carrying all of the food, after all.

"I don't want to play tag with you!" the oldest was screaming as he ran from the two big dogs chasing him.

Choromatsu sighed, "I finally found us a bench and now this? Don't run away from them. They'll think you want to play with them."

"But they want my food! Vicious beasts!"

"Just bring them here. Tell Jyushi to come, too."

The sixtruplets finally got to eat.

Granny had made them all a delicious packed lunch.

"So cute!" Totty exclaimed when he lifted the lid of his box.

The lunches were decorated with all kinds of cute ways.

The brothers all smiled when opening theirs.

Granny had had to use food coloring to get the meals to match the brothers' respective colors.

Osomatsu had omurice. The rice was red because of the ketchup in it. The box also had the most side dishes out of the six. There was everything from octopus shaped wieners to fried chicken.

Karamatsu had his boxed lunch's rice colored blue. The fried chicken was luckily its normal color. Granny had also added edible sparkles into the meal. All in all, it looked quite disturbing.

Choromatsu had many vegetables in his box, giving it some green color. Choromatsu couldn't help smiling when he saw the octopus wieners. It was truly like he was back in school, eating lunch on the rooftop.

Ichimatsu had cat-shaped rice balls topped off with seaweed whiskers, eyes and even tiny noses. They had a tuna and mayonnaise mix in them. The side dishes were all fish.

Jyushimatsu's rice was shaped and decorated to look like a baseball. The box also had tamagoyaki and vegetables in it.

Todomatsu had a traditional boxed luch, like Choromatsu. The rice was colored pink though and there were three macarones sitting in the box, too.

"Thank you for the meal!" the brothers cheered after devouring their lunch.

It was delicious as always. The brothers made sure to send Granny a text thanking her for the awesome meal.

The next stop of the six was the inn they were supposed to stay in during their little vacation.

The building itself was easy to find. It was in a back street not too far away from the park they had been in.

Choromatsu carefully opened the sliding front door and the brothers stepped in.

Totty was hiding behind Jyushi, who was looking around curiously.

A woman emerged from one of the rooms. She was an over middle-aged woman with greying hair and wrinkles.

She wore a smile on her face as she greeted her guests, "Hello boys! I've been expecting you! You mother has told me all kinds of things about you six."

Five brothers greeted the woman while one went in for a hug. It was Jyushi of course.

"Are you six in a hurry? I have some tea ready if you want some", the owner of the inn asked the boys.

"No thank you", Choromatsu smiled, "We're here to drop off our luggage. We're in a bit of a hurry."

"That's alright. I'll be sure to have dinner ready when you come back."

"Thank you so much", the brothers bowed waving their goodbyes, "We'll be sure to be back by dinner."

"Have fun!"

"I wonder how she knows our mother", Karamatsu was the first one to point out, "She looks a bit younger than mom."

"Mom said they were school buddies or something", Osomatsu said, "Maybe she helped her with something."

"Didn't mom meet dad while they were studying?" Choromatsu asked.

"Yeah", Totty replied, "Mom and dad did say something like that."

"A lot happens in school, huh?" Karamatsu sighed.

"Yeah", Osomatsu mumbled.

Ichimatsu and Jyuhsi didn't take part in the conversation.

Ichi was too busy trying to keep the fifth from running to a road or something in his excitement while Jyushi was collecting flowers and putting them in his brother's messy hair.

"There", Jyushi put the final flower in admiring his work, "All pretty."

Ichimatsu wasn't shaken by the makeover. He carried his new flower crown with pride.

Totty and Osomatsu were laughing their asses off when they finally noticed their brother's new look.

"Looking good, Ichi", Karamatsu gave his brother the thumbs up.

That got a reaction out of the fourth.

Ichi shook the flowers off of his hair with a huff, "Fuck you."

He did let Jyushi put one flower behind his ear afterwards though, apologizing about his previous behavior.

"Okay Jyushi, we're almost there", Choromatsu told the fifth as they were getting closer.

Jyushi was vibrating with excitement.

Ichi swore he could've whipped cream with the movement. Just put a bowl on top of his head and there it was, "Calm down, Jyushi. It's not like the place is going to disappear or run away."

"But I'm excited", Jyushi flapped his sleeves.

"We can see that", Osomatsu smiled, "But really, it's not gonna run away."

The brothers finally saw their destination as they turned from a street corner.

"Ta-da!" Totty cheered.

"Tokyo Disney Land!" Jyushi's eyes were sparkling.

The sixtruplets had watched some classic Disney films when they were younger, so this would be a nostalgia trip for them all.

"We looked up many places but we thought this one was the best option", Ichimatsu mumbled, "Since we all like Disney."

Jyushi almost took off running.

Karamatsu caught him in the last second, "Calm down, brother."

"I've already bought our tickets so all we need to do now is to wait in line to get them checked", Choromatsu explained as the six got to the park's entrance.

The line was fairly short this time of the day.

Work hadn't ended yet and the best season was already over.

The only visitors were families and young students.

That being said, the six got through and into the park in about ten minutes.

"Wow", Totty and Jyushi looked around in wonder.

Choromatsu was checking the map after the brothers had walked to the main entrance, "So, where do you guys want to go first? We're currently in World Bazaar."

All six brothers crowded around the map.

Jyushimatsu's broken hand was a problem. Rides with a possibility of hitting the hand and hurting it more were automatically out of question.

"How about the riverboat?" Choromatsu tried after intense five minutes of thinking.

"Boring!" Totty whined, "I want something more awesome!"

"Big Thunber Mountain!" Osomatsu screamed.

Choromatsu checked the ride. It was a rollercoaster.

"No way! You can go there later", Choromatsu raged.

Jyushi wouldn't be able to ride with them on the rollercoaster and Choromatsu wanted all six to ride the first ride together.

"How about you, Ichi?" Osomatsu was pouting, trying to get someone to agree with his plan.

"Where did Ichi go?" Totty wondered, the fourth was nowhere to be seen.

Choromatsu sighed, "Did he get lost already? We've been here for five minutes!"

"There he is!" Osomatsu pointed out.

Ichimatsu approached the group with an ice cream in hand.

"Here", he gave it to Jyushi.

"Hey! I want ice cream, too!" Osomatsu was pouting even more.

"Get your own", Ichi tsk'ed.

Choromatsu was getting a headache, "Jyushi, where would you like to go first?"

Jyushi took a look at the colorful map.

"There!" he finally pointed at a ride.

"Pirates of the Caribbean?" Karamatsu read the name of the ride, "I like those movies."

"Doesn't it go a bit too fast though?" Choromatsu was worried.

"Shut it! It's decided!" Totty told his big brother, "That's our first ride."

"Pirates!" Jyushi cheered as Ichi tried to clean his little brother's face with a napkin.

There were some characters the six stopped to watch along the way.

"Are you sure there are no cat characters in Disney?" Ichi mumbled to Totty, who was sure to know every character by name.

"There's Figaro isn't there? The cat in Pinocchio", Totty replied trying to get a good picture of some weird building.

"He is a minor character."

"We'll, then I can't help you."

Osomatsu was sulking once again.

"Are you still mad about the ride? Grow up already", Choromatsu told him.

"It's not that", Osomatsu mumbled, "There are way too many couples here! The single me is suffering!"

"Ah, true", Choromatsu whispered to his brother, "They're all looking at us though. Are sixtruplets really that unusual?"

"I guess they are", Osomatsu whispered back, "Karamatsu must be blinding them with his shining."

"True."

"The line is so long!" Jyushi exclaimed as the six finally made it to the ride.

Choromatsu had read about the lines and long waiting times but nothing could've prepared him for this.

"The ride lasts fifteen minutes", Choromatsu read, "We'll be waiting in line double that time!"

"Pirates!" Jyushi was clearly ready for the wait, for once.

"Well, we have some time to look where to go next", Karamatsu pointed out taking a map out of his pocket.

"I guess so", Choromatsu took out his map, too.

"Pirates!" Jyushi was clapping his hands, "Pirates!"

"Yeah, yeah", Ichimatsu agreed googling Disney characters. There had to be at least one cat in there.

"Should we go get food next?" Osomatsu asked. He was hungry for something sweet.

Totty was uploading his latest photos online, "Shut up."


	21. Chapter 21: Disneyland Adventure

"Man, that was a good ride!" Osomatsu cheered when the six finally made it out of the Pirates of the Caribbean ride.

Although the ride had lasted fifteen minutes and the brothers had been in the line for twenty, the ride had totally been worth the wait. The characters were all realistic and the music was amazing.

Despite the fact that some brothers had only seen one or two of the movies, they all enjoyed the ride.

Choromatsu had gotten mad when there were some small spoilers there and there. The rest had just laughed them all off, saying they wouldn't remember then anyways.

"Agreed!" Totty laughed nervously, "Awesome!"

"You and Karamatsu were the ones screaming though", Choromatsu laughed, "Don't try to sound tough you sissy!"

"W-What?" Karamatsu was blushing, "The skeletons looked real!"

Jyushimatsu was clinging to Ichimatsu, both smiling, "Sissies!"

"I read from somewhere that sailors had cats with them on the ships to catch mice", Ichimatsu mumbled, "I bet pirates had some, too."

"They were there to keep the mice from eating their food and spreading disease", Choromatsu informed.

"Always with the cats", Todomatsu sighed. His big brother was hopeless.

"Pirate kitties!" Jyushi clapped his hands, "But wouldn't they eat the parrots?"

"Don't think about it too much", Choromatsu told his little philosopher of a brother.

After taking a group photo with some characters, it was time to decide where to go next.

"Hmm…", Choromatsu was puckering his brows in thought, "I still suggest the boat ride."

"Booooring!" this time both Osomatsu and Totty sang.

Ichi and Jyushi both looked at the map.

"This one?" Jyushi suggested.

"Yeah, let's go there", Ichi nodded in agreement, "Jungle Cruise."

"Hey!" Choromatsu roared, "Don't go and decide things without us!"

Totty looked at the map, "Jungle Cruise, huh? Sounds good to me!"

"Yeah", Karamatsu agreed, "Let's go."

Choromatsu had to give up, "Alright, let's go there next. Jungle Cruise it is."

"Animals!" Jyushi cheered.

"They're all fake you know", Choromatsu mumbled.

"Animals!"

"Whatever."

The line was, once again, long but the brothers were used to it by now.

They had gone and gotten themselves churros to eat while waiting in line. Now they were enjoying their sweet treats. The wait felt much more bearable with something to munch on.

Totty was getting his smartphone ready so that he could take as many pictures as possible. Fake or not, animals were animals and everyone wanted to see those. He was going to get so many likes.

"We'll get a tour and everything", Choromatsu looked at the info board of the ride, "A guy will come and tell us everything we need to know about the animals."

While Karamatsu wasn't looking, Osomatsu went in for the kill and chomped at least half off of his little brother's treat.

The second brother didn't even notice. He was too focused on his mirror image.

Ichimatsu was snickering. Serves the narcissistic idiot right.

When Karamatsu finally noticed the crime, it was too late, "Hey!"

"Huh?" Osomatsu was licking his fingers looking content.

"You ate my churro, didn't you?"

"Prove it", the oldest grinned triumphantly.

Karamatsu gave up. It just wasn't worth it.

The line was slightly shorter this time and the brothers were aboard the ship sooner than they were expecting.

It seemed like the exotic animals weren't as interesting as the sixtruplets aboard the ship.

Even the tour guide stared at them.

Seriously, were sixtruplets really that rare?

'Just begin already', Choromatsu blushed. He was too much of a virgin to be able to stand the stares.

When the ship's motor finally started, the brothers were just about ready to jump off board.

The mood settled fast when the tour began and the first animal robots were in sight.

There was everything from hippos to elephants and big felines.

Ichi's eyes were sparkling when he spotted a tiger in one of the bushes seemingly stalking its prey.

"Take a picture. Take a picture", he shook Totty, ordering him.

"Alright, understood", Totty sighed taking a couple pictures for his big brother, "There, happy?"

Ichi nodded, clearly wanting the little brother to send the pictures to him afterwards.

"Ooo, hippo!" Jyushi was leaning over the edge of the ship, "So big!"

"Be careful, brother", Karamatsu grabbed his little brother hoodie to keep him onboard, "We don't want you to fall and get wet."

Jyushi listened and sat back down, "Hippo!"

"I wonder if you could ride one. They seem quite rideable", Karamatsu thought.

"Hippos are one of the most dangerous animals in the world…", the tour guy then explained telling how many people the seemingly cute and innocent animal had killed.

"Never mind. Not rideable", Karamatsu concluded.

Jyushi nodded. Not rideable.

"But I bet Ichi could ride one", Jyushi exclaimed, "He has a friend tiger!"

"Don't give him any ideas!" Karamatsu silenced his little brother, "He might actually try it."

"Hippos aren't fluffy and they don't have squishy paws either", Ichi mumbled with a smile, having heard the conversation.

Jyushi nodded, deep in thought. Maybe they could serve as tanks, then. For emergencies.

Osomatsu seemed to be deep in thought.

In reality, he was thinking about how the meat of a hippo would taste like.

He came to the conclusion that it would taste like mud, for some unknown reason.

He also though how it would be like to work as a tour guide or in the park overall. He could be the one to hit the brakes in the rollercoaster.

'It can't be that hard now, can it', the oldest concluded.

Not that he was ready to post a job application or anything. Too much of a hassle.

There were some aboriginals, too, along the ride.

"Jyushi", Totty laughed, "Doesn't that look familiar. The dress."

Jyushimatsu was smiling, not understanding the point, "Huh?"

The four other brothers were laughing, too.

The style of their clothing was just like Jyushi's when he'd decide to dress to impress.

"Looking good", Karamatsu gave Jyushi the thumbs up.

Osomatsu agreed, "Should we all try dressing up like that?"

"No!" Choromatsu screamed, "It would scare the neighbours!"

"Where next?" Osomatsu asked when the six were done with their second ride of the day. "I want to go on a rollercoaster next!"

"I think we should go eat something", Choromatsu was browsing through the restaurant section of the map, "There are a couple family-friendly ones near us."

"It's time for lunch, too", Karamatsu nodded in agreement, "What do you feel like having, brothers?"

"Let's go in one first, then we can decide what we want", Choromatsu told them.

The nearest one was the most ridiculous and childish-looking restaurant in the area much to the older brothers' dislike.

"It looks so pink", Karamatsu mumbled.

"I didn't know a restaurant could look fluffy", Osomatsu agreed, "I hope I don't find hair in the food or something."

"You're one to speak, Karamatsu", Choromatsu scoffed, "Seriously, what's with those pants? That shirt is so tasteless, too."

"It's called style. Get some, brother", Karamatsu smiled proudly fixing his sunglasses.

Jyushi and Totty seemed to like the place, seeing they were both squealing in joy.

"Let's take a picture, Jyushi", Totty was already posing next to a colorful advert.

"Yeah!" Jyushi took a silly pose, "Like this?"

"Okay, on three!"

"Ichi, you come too!"

"Huh? No", Ichi mumbled looking at a menu.

The kid's menu to be exact. They were offering fish fingers with french fries.

"Ichiii! Sissy!" Totty sang motioning him to join.

"Alright", Ichi gave in, "This one time."

"Yay!" Jyushi hugged Ichi, taking a new pose.

"Are you ready to make an order?" a waitress came to the brothers' table with a tablet in hand.

"The kid's menu", Ichi mumbled.

Choromatsu looked at his little brother doubting, "I'll take the number four."

The rest also made their orders.

Todomatsu ordered something super fancy-sounding while Karamatsu ordered the same as Choromatsu.

Osomatsu ordered the biggest serving there was.

Jyushi ordered the same as his two big brothers.

Order number four was fried chicken and french fries topped with a ketchup and mayonnaise topping.

Everyone got soda with their order.

Ichi had milk with his and Choromatsu and Todomatsu had mineral water.

Beer wasn't even an option.

Only four of the brother drank alcohol though. Karamatsu and Ichimatsu didn't drink.

The food was done in record time.

Restaurants back home took at least half an hour but this one was done in about ten.

Disney Land had their things sorted out, it seemed.

"Food, food, food!" Osomatsu and Jyushi were slamming their utensils singing.

The brothers took their first bites.

All six had been starving after a long evening of waiting in line and riding rides.

"So good!" Osomatsu cheered mouth full of food.

Jyushi and Ichi traded foods. One got a fish finger while the other got a chicken nugget.

"Can I get one, too, Jyushi?" Totty asked his brother, offering him a piece of his food.

"Sure!" Jyushi put a nugget on his little brother's plate chomping his little brother's offering right off the fork.

"Thank you", Totty sweat dropped.

"I'm stuffed!" Totty huffed as the six made their way out of the restaurant.

Luckily the restaurant had already been full of noise, otherwise the six would've been kicked out instantly.

"It was great", Choromatsu agreed patting his belly, "And fairly cheap, too."

That got Jyushi's attention as well as Karamatsu's, who pulled the third brother aside.

"Choromatsu, didn't you say we wouldn't talk about money!?" Karamatsu whispered, "Look at Jyushi, he got worried."

"Ah! Yes, I'm sorry", Choromatsu whispered back.

"Fix this!"

Choromatsu and Karamatsu returned to the group, "Aa-a! Who's up for some dessert?"

"I saw a crepe place nearby", Totty was tapping his phone, "How does that sound?"

"Yay!" Osomatsu cheered, "Crepes!"

Ichimatsu was feeling full after eating, "Jyushi, wanna share one with me?"

"Sure!" Jyushimatsu smiled, "I couldn't eat a whole one anyways."

"That's decided then!" Choromatsu cheered giving Karamatsu the thumbs up, "My treat."

Karamatsu gave his little brother a nod. Great save.

"Hooray!" Osomatsu danced his way to the booth.

After ordering the crepes, the brothers sat down on a bench to eat them in peace.

Jyushi and Ichi were trying their best in sharing the treat. It wasn't easy and the two got whipped cream all over themselves.

Karamatsu made sure to wipe the stuff off with the napkins he had hoarded in case of emergencies like these. Such a good big brother.

"Should we begin heading back to the inn?" Totty asked.

The sun was beginning to set into the horizon and the park goers were leaving.

All of the brothers were tired after a day full of different activities, so Choromatsu nodded alongside his two older brothers.

"Let's go", Choromatsu finished his treat, "I saw a public bathhouse next to the inn, too. We can go there later."

The brothers were saved. Any regular shower or bathtub was way too small for the six of them, who preferred to all wash themselves the same time.

"Yeah!" the brothers agreed.

"We're back!" Osomatsu shouted as he slid the door of the inn open.

But there was no nice lady present, no, there was a Shiba Inu dog waiting for them.

The dog didn't seem too happy to see the weird guests as it was barking loudly.

"Goro, dear!" the inn's owner came running from one of the rooms, "Stop barking at the guests!"

"Goro…", Ichi mumbled. The most cliché name for the most cliché Japanese dog breed.

"I'm so sorry! My little girl has gotten the idea that she is a guard dog and the guests are his enemies or something."

"No, no, it's alright", Choromatsu assured, "Miss…?"

"Aiko, just call me Aiko", the lady smiled, "Hasn't your mother talked about me at all?"

"Not really", Osomatsu admitted.

"Rude!" Aiko huffed, "But just like Matsuyo. I'll tell you about us during lunch or something."

"Thank you", Choromatsu smiled.

The brothers were really interested.

"We're going to go to the bathhouse next door", Choromatsu told her, "We'll be back by dinner. Don't worry."

"Of course!" Aiko smiled, "Tell the owner you're my guests. He's a friend of mine."

The bath time was uneventful.

Osomatsu almost fell down because of a bar of soap.

Ichi fell asleep in the bath but was saved by Karamatsu before he could drown.

Todomatsu helped Jyushi bathe. They still needed to mind the cast. It mustn't get wet after all.

Choromatsu had, once again, made a protective glove out of plastic bags and tape for his little brother's injured left hand.

The owner gave the six a discount not only because Aiko's name was mentioned but because there were simply so many of them. Group discount was in place.

The brothers were fresh and clean when they stepped into their room the first time.

Aiko had already carried their bags to the room so all they had to do now was unpack and get downstairs.

Karamatsu opened one of the closets, "Brothers, I think we have a problem."

"What? Show me", Osomatsu slid the door open, "Six individual futons!"

"That's not a problem", Choromatsu screamed, "We finally have space to sleep!"

"Choromatsu", Totty sighed shaking his head, "You monster."

"What?!"

"Brothers sleep together!" Osomatsu exclaimed, "Unite the futons!"

"Yeah!" Jyushi and Totty cheered clapping their hands.

"Alright", Choromatsu gave up the second time that day, "But for now, let's go downstairs."

Aiko had made a light dinner for the boys after hearing that they had eaten a lot in the park.

They all sat down to enjoy the meal.

Goro sat next to Aiko, munching on a cucumber and eyeing the six brothers.

Jyushi went in to pet the dog, who almost got a hold of his sleeve when she tried to bite him.

Aiko smiled embarrassed, "Goro is a food protector, too. Don't mind her. She'll warm up to you in no time."

Ichi was hugging his little brother, "It's alright. It's just a dog."

"So, Aiko, can you tell us how you met our mother?" Choromatsu finally spoke after the boys had eaten for a while.

"Of course", Aiko smiled scratching her dog behind the ears, "But let me warn you. It's not the usual 'two friends meet' story."

"Fire away", Osomatsu smiled.

"When we met, your mother had already met your father", Aiko began, "I would've never thought your mother would marry that wimp. I mean, he did act all tough, but when a real situation came, he would be the first to run."

The brothers were snickering. Sounded just like their dad.

"I'm actually two years older than your mother. I was a shy and focused solely on studying", Aiko sighed, "That was a mistake. I had no social life and was a constant target for the bullies. It was no surprise when one day I was cornered by a group of them on my way to class."

It had been a normal day for Aiko.

She had woken up early to cook breakfast for herself and get ready for school.

After packing her bags and taking an umbrella with her, she was out of the door.

The forecast had promised a slight drizzle but for now, the weather was clear and sunny.

Aiko was reading a book as she made her way to the school. She hadn't had the time to read the chapter yesterday, so she decided that she'd read it now.

Having her nose deep in the book, she didn't see a thing, which meant she didn't see the bullies coming either.

"Hello, nerd", one of them began, "Is that interesting?"

"Huh?" Aiko was caught by surprise.

"The book", the thug took the book from Aiko's hand and threw it into a nearby puddle.

"Hey! I was reading that."

"Of course you were, nerd", another one sneered.

"You'll need to pay for that you know."

"Yeah, right."

"I'm being serious here. I'll tell the teacher, too. He'll get you suspended."

"We can't have that", a third thug took Aiko's chin and lifted her face up, "Maybe, we'll shut that pretty mouth of yours."

"Stop it!"

"Good idea", the second cracked his knuckles.

But before any of the boys were able to even touch a hair in Aiko's head, there was a voice, "Why don't you bully someone your size? And hitting girls? Really lame, boys. Really lame."

The three thugs turned around to face the intruder, "Matsuyo, what's it to you?"

Aiko was stunned. The young woman was dressed in the school's regular uniform but managed to look fiercer than any of the thugs.

Matsuyo shrugged, "Nothing, I saw someone in trouble and decided to help."

"You better leave before we hurt you, too", one of the thugs, clearly the leader, told her.

Matsuyo had picked up the book that had been thrown into a puddle before. She was reading it, looking puzzled by the contents.

Then she suddenly threw the book, hitting the leader right to the face with it, "Really? I don't like the sound of that."

"Hey! That girl is feisty!" one of the thugs laughed, the other had already ran away.

"There's more in where that came from", Matsuyo huffed, "Scatter, before I call my friends to help me."

"Tsk, this is not worth it", the leader spat and began walking away.

The remaining thug watched his leader leaving the scene for a good minute before scrambling after him.

Aiko was staring at her junior the whole time, "So cool", she muttered.

Matsuyo turned to Aiko and began laughing, "'Cool'? Hardly!"

She pointed at the book she had thrown before, "Sorry about that. It was already soaked anyway, so I thought throwing it wouldn't do any more harm. I looked at the contents before throwing it, too, and it looked like gibberish to me."

Now it was Aiko's turn to laugh, "You are my junior, after all. Yeah, no harm done. I'd rather sacrifice a book than get punched to the face."

The school's bells rang that exact moment, the melody reminding the students that they should all be in class by now.

"We're late", Aiko was wiping tears off the corners of her eyes, having laughed so much.

"Better get going then", Matsuyo took off swinging her bag, "What class do you have? I could walk you there."

"Chemistry."

"I hate the teacher. He's so boring."

Aiko smiled, "Agreed. He could smile at least once."

"Is it okay if I come and get you during lunch? I could introduce you to my friends."

"I'd eat alone anyways, so sure."

"Be prepared", Matsuyo winked before disappearing into a classroom they were passing by.

"Got that", Aiko laughed, walking to her own class, late of course.

"Aiko!" Matsuyo was there, just like she had promised, "Lunch!"

She was waving a big lunch box in her hand and with the other, she held to a male student.

He must've been one of her friends.

The trio made their way outside and under the shade of a tree before opening their lunch boxes.

"Matsuyo, your lunch looks so cute!" Aiko exclaimed looking at the cute designs of the rice balls and everything else in the box.

"Thank you! Matsuzo made it for me. I'd normally make it myself but I was late this morning, as you saw."

"Matsuzo?"

"Ah! I haven't introduced you two yet!" Matsuyo panicked.

The young male beside her laughed, "I'm Matsuzo."

Aiko looked from one to the other, "Are you two…?"

"Dating? Yes", they both smiled side to side.

"High school sweethearts", Matsuyo added.

They all burst into laughter.

Aiko graduated that summer, leaving behind both Matsuyo and Matsuzo.

The three had become great friends, spending time together even outside school.

Aiko would teach her juniors at the subjects they didn't understand.

The two Matsus would teach Aiko to take things easy without neglecting her studies.

Even after graduating, the three kept in touch via phone and letters.

But when the two juniors graduated, the connection was lost.

It was a cloudy day in January when Aiko got a phone call.

She had, despite all the odds, began running her parents' inn. She was supposed to become a consultant or something but the studies didn't go that well and the jobs she had gotten had bored her to death.

"Hello?" Aiko answered the phone.

"Aiko? It's Matsuyo!" came the familiar voice from the other end.

"Matsuyo! How have you been?"

"Fine, of course! Sorry I haven't called. You changed your address and your phone number. I did my best to find you."

Aiko realized her mistake, "Ah! I moved in with my parents and I lost my phone! I'm so sorry!"

There was a laugh, "It's alright! The point is that we're talking now. Hey, hey! Matsuzo finally confessed! We got married last year. I would've invited you but you told us you hated weddings."

"Congratulations! It was about time", Aiko congratulated the two.

"And I'm pregnant!"

"Really?!"

"Yep, third of fourth month."

Aiko smiled, "I didn't see you as a mother character."

"You're the one to talk", Matsuyo laughed, "How are you? Found a partner yet?"

"Not yet but I'm on it."

"You go girl!" Matsuyo cheered, "Ah! I need to go now. Matsuzo is calling. We moved into a new house and everything is still a total mess."

"Alright. Call me later."

The two talked and even visited each other before it was time for Matsuyo to visit the hospital.

Aiko was home stuck working while her best friend was in labour.

She was gripping the counter of the inn with whitening knuckles as she waited for the results.

Matsuzo had promised he'd call her as soon as Matsuyo was done.

Near midnight, the phone suddenly rang.

Aiko made a beeline to the phone, "Yes?!"

Matsuzo's voice came from the other end of the line, he sounded tired but happy, "Calm down! Matsuyo is just fine. She's the toughest woman I know."

"How's the baby?"

"Multiple that 'baby' six times."

"Huh?"

"Matsuyo surprised us all with sixtruplets. They're all healthy and well and currently sleeping with their mother."

"Six?!"

"Yes, identical."

"Oh my god…"

"Come see us any day."

"I will. Should I bring something?"

"Bring aspirin. We'll be needing that."

"And that is how we met", Aiko finished her story, "And how I met you six."

"Was our mom a delinquent?" Jyushimatsu asked.

Choromatsu slapped him gently to the head.

"No! She was a model student!" Aiko laughed, "I'd call it vigilante justice. She protected the weak."

"Wow!" Osomatsu whistled, "Our mom is awesome!"

"She is", Aiko agreed, "But now, it's late and you six should go sleep."

Ichimatsu and Totty were both yawning, "Agreed."

The six made their way upstairs while Goro circled their feet.

The dog turned to go back down before the brothers got to their room.

She wouldn't be sleeping with the sixtuplets. Her owner's bed was calling her.

"Jyushi, blood pressure", Choromatsu yelled when his little brother was burrowing under the blankets.

"Yes", Jyushi sat next to his big brother yawning loudly.

"We need to make a diary entry, too."

"Yes, yes."

The blood pressure and diary were both things that Jyushimatsu's doctor had suggested.

He had noticed how anxious his patient had been during the couple of visits he had paid him.

The solution, get the hospital to him.

The blood pressure was the main concern alongside Jyushi's mood. It had been going up and down with the drug but it was finally steadily returning to normal.

For the mood swings, Jyushi got a little diary where he was instructed to write something every day. It could be about how the day went or what he had seen. What had made him mad or what had made him happy. The main thing was that Jyushi would tell how he was feeling and process it.

Choromatsu was there for him, not only because he wrote down the blood pressure, but because he helped Jyushi with the writing.

Jyushimatsu was bad at writing kanji and he wanted to get better at it.

"Jyushi, you write it like this", Choromatsu showed his little brother patiently and watched Jyushi try again, "Good, just remember the order of the strokes."

"Okay", Jyushi was humming as he drew a picture to tell what he had done today.

"Should we put some stickers, too?"

"Yes!" Jyushi watched his brother dig through his bag fetching a huge array of stickers for his little brother.

"There we go. Remember to wash your teeth when you're done", Choromatsu reminded his brother as he stood up and went to brush his teeth.

Osomatsu and Karamatsu had managed to arrange the futons.

All six didn't fit into the room when they were placed next to each other so the two brothers had improvised.

There were three beds in a row and there were two rows in total. The rows were next to each other. It was like the number six in a die.

All of the brothers fell asleep as soon as they were buried under their blankets.

The day had been long and full of action after all. It was no wonder they were tired.

The six had even tried to make some plans for tomorrow despite knowing very well that they wouldn't last.


	22. Chapter 22:Another Day,Another Adventure

Ichimatsu had had to wake up in the middle of the night.

Granny had called him so that ESP Kitty could hear his owner's voice.

The feline was missing Ichi just as much as Ichi was missing the cat.

Ichi talked for about an hour. He had retreated to the dimly lit hallway so that he wouldn't wake his brothers up. They needed their sleep after the long day.

In the middle of the phone call, there was the unmistakable sound of paws on wood.

Ichi didn't know if it was because he had watched one too many horror films or because of the general atmosphere of the inn, but he was getting scared.

The noise came closer and closer.

Now Ichi really wished he had ESP Kitty with him.

Goro, the inn's Shiba Inu, emerged from the shadows and stared at Ichimatsu with her dark eyes.

Her tail wasn't wagging nor were her ears in any readable position, so it was impossible to tell what the dog was up to. Ichi really hated this side of dogs. It was impossible for him to tell what they were thinking.

Both were quiet for a minute, then Goro made her move.

Ichi could've sworn he felt the dog's dark aura looming over him.

He flinched when the dog moved closer and closer, the claws of her paws rapping on the wooden floor.

When she was next to the fourth Matsuno brother, she put her head on Ichi's lap and huffed.

Ichi had been holding his breath.

Alright, the dog wasn't going to kill him just yet. Maybe she was waiting for when he'd end the call.

Goro stayed there for the whole call, probably thinking that she was offering the man comfort by being there.

Truth be told, Ichi was terrified. The only thing keeping him sane was Granny's voice and ESP Kitty's purring on the phone next to his ear.

When Ichimatsu finally ended the call, there was a pregnant silence between the two occupants of the hallway.

Goro lifted one of her paws and put it on Ichi's shoulder, letting out a quiet bark.

Ichi stayed still. He looked just about dead.

Goro circled her guest a couple of times before running off in a hurry.

Ichi sighed. He was safe.

But no, the dog came back carrying a cucumber it her mouth.

When she was next to Ichi once again, she dropped the vegetable to his feet and whined.

"Yes?" Ichi managed to muster the courage to ask the dog.

Another whine and a nudge.

"I don't want your cucumber."

Goro lied on his back looking at Ichi with sad eyes.

'I understand how you feel', she was trying to get the message through.

Although she was seen as a merciless guard dog, she had a heart.

Goro had been abandoned at a very young age and spent a year in a shelter before Aiko took her in.

She knew how it felt to be alone and she had sensed her guest's loneliness when they had been eating dinner together.

Ichimatsu carefully put his hand on top of the dog's head.

Goro knew to stay still. She was a smart dog, after all.

She had noticed that the young male had a huge fear of dogs.

Ichi scratched the dog behind her ears and when Goro closed her eyes in pleasure, Ichi smiled a little.

The ears were as soft as a cat's.

"Good girl", Ichi whispered, "Why aren't you with your master?"

Goro whined and put her paw on Ichi's knee, 'You need me more right now.'

"You know, I read from somewhere that Shiba Inu's are the cats of the dog world", Ichi smiled as he pet the dog's beautiful, thick fur.

Goro huffed, licking Ichi's face gently.

"Thank you", Ichi scratched the dog's from under the chin, "But I really need to go back to sleep now."

Goro wagged her tail as Ichi stood up.

He had been sitting on the floor this whole time.

But when Ichi opened the door to return to the brothers' room, the dog slipped in and curled to sleep on Ichi's empty futon.

"What are you doing?" Ichi asked the dog.

Goro's answer was to put her head down and get ready to sleep.

Ichi sighed, "Alright. Just don't scare my brothers. Be extra careful with Jyushi. His hand is hurt."

Ichi snuggled back under the covers, minding the dog.

When he felt the familiar warmth of an animal on his legs, he fell asleep with a smile on his lips.

"Doggy!" Ichi woke up to his little brother exclaiming, "How did you get in here?"

Goro hadn't attacked his brothers during the night.

Ichi was relieved to notice that when he sat up yawning.

Choromatsu had hid in a closet with Karamatsu and Todomatsu was covering his face with a pillow.

Osomatsu was still asleep, otherwise he, too, would've ran away from the beast.

This time, Goro let Jyushi pet him without even the slightest growl.

"Good girl!" Jyushi told the dog, "Did you protect Ichi while he slept, from the bedbugs?"

Goro huffed and wagged her tail, 'Of course!'

"She came to me when I was talking with Granny and decided that she wanted to sleep with us for the night", Ichi explained, "She's not easy to persuade once she has made her decision."

Jyushi agreed, still petting the dog, "How was Granny?"

"Great. ESP Kitty was feeling homesick, that's all."

"Poor Kitty. Did you comfort him?"

"Hmm", Ichi nodded, "He fell asleep after we talked. Batter was comforting him the whole time, too."

"Good. Cats need their sleep."

Ichi agreed.

After dragging Osomatsu out of bed, the six went down for breakfast.

Goro was the first in line, running down the stairs.

"Goro! Where have you been? I was worried you know!" Aiko lectured the dog running to sit by her feet.

"She came to guard us for the night", Ichi smiled, "She's an excellent guard dog."

"Ah! Is that so?", Aiko laughed, "I told you she'd warm up to you all!"

Totty was still hiding behind his big brothers, "Y-Yeah."

"She's a good girl!" Jyushi cheered, "She deserves a big cucumber!"

Aiko laughed, "I guess she does! But I think a bone sounds better."

Goro barked in joy, wagging her tail.

Cucumbers were her favorite but bones were delicious, too.

The brothers ate their breakfast.

Goro was enjoying her juicy bone next to Aiko, wagging her tail merrily.

"Do you have any plans for today?" Aiko asked, leaning on her elbows.

"We have some rides we've planned to go to but we'll have to see what happens", Choromatsu told her, browsing through the day's newspaper.

"It's not easy to plan stuff with sixtruplets", Karamatsu added, "We like to improvise."

Aiko laughed at that. She could just imagine the six trying to carry out their plans unsuccessfully.

"We'll try our best", Choromatsu sighed.

This was going to be a long day.

He hoped they'd at least manage to ride the It's A Small World ride today.

The park was quieter than yesterday.

The weather had been terrible during the night and the ground was still wet.

It was obvious the park goers had been spooked by the night and morning's rain.

Luckily for the brothers, the weather was just fine now.

It wasn't too hot nor too cold and there was only a slight drizzle from time to time.

"Where should we go first…", Choromatsu was looking at the map, trying to look which of the rides the brothers had wanted to go to were the closest.

Just at that moment, Todomatsu and Jyushimatsu got distracted by a runaway balloon.

The two ran after it, leaving the four older brothers watching the map.

"How does It's A Small World first sound?" Choromatsu asked the opinion of the younger brothers.

"Sounds fine", Ichi mumbled, having googled Disney cats and found Aladdin and Rajah the tiger.

"What about Totty-", much to Choromatsu's the rest of the older brothers' horror, the two youngest were gone, "Jyushi?! Totty?!"

"Where did they go?!" Karamatsu's papa-mode was surfacing, "Did you see them, Ichi?!"

"N-No", Ichi was trying to call Jyushi but the younger brother's phone was apparently left on silent-mode, "And Jyushi won't answer his phone."

"Totty won't either", Karamatsu cried, "Even though he literally carries it in his hand all the time!"

"He's probably distracted by something", Choromatsu sighed. This was hopeless. They had plans.

"Hey guys, they're both adults", Osomatsu pointed out, "I bet they can handle this."

Osomatsu seemed to be the only one out of the four who was able to think rationally in a situation like this.

There was of course the possibility that he was taking things too lightly once again. It was like him to do so.

"But think of all the things that could happen!" Karamatsu was tearing his hair in frustration, "They could go on a ride too fast or scary for them! They could get crushed by the crowd, too! Or end up wandering somewhere off limits!"

Mama Choromatsu wasn't doing any better. He was searching for the closest 'Info' sign and where he could make an announcement for two missing children.

Okay, Ichimatsu admitted that his big brother's scenarios where a bit far-fetched, but he, too, was worried that his goof of a little brother would find himself in trouble or get hurt.

"Calm down! They were probably just hungry or needed to find a toilet", Osomatsu was taking this all quite well. He was the big brother after all. He trusted his little brothers.

"We can't just wait for them to return! We need to find them!" Choromatsu was close to dialing the emergency number at this point.

"They're adults", Osomatsu sighed, "How many times do I have to remind you. They're the same age as you. Sixtruplets, remember?"

Karamatsu was pacing now.

Choromatsu was sure to join him any second now.

Ichimatsu was trying to call his brother for the hundredth time.

There was still no answer.

Ichi was sure to scold Jyushi after they had found him.

"We need to go find the info desk!" Choromatsu screamed.

"Agreed!" Karamatsu exclaimed and the two stomped away, leaving the oldest and the fourth Matsuno by themselves.

When the two were out of sight and most definitely lost somewhere within the crowd, Osomatsu sighed, "We were meant to find the two youngest and now we're all separated."

Ichimatsu agreed. That was a stupid move.

"Well, let's go find the little ones. It's not like we can get any more lost than we already are", Osomatsu told his little brother as he began walking away.

"True", Ichimatsu agreed, following the oldest, "We'll have more chances in finding them like this."

The sun was already setting when the Osomatsu and Ichimatsu tag team finally found the two youngest brothers.

The park was huge, so it was no wonder they had managed to miss each other for this long.

"Jyushi!" Ichi exclaimed when he finally spotted his little brother sitting on a bench with Totty.

"Ichi!" Jyushi smiled, "Where were you? We were looking for you all!"

"Yeah! Don't go and get lost like that!" Todomatsu pouted.

"How about keeping your phones on, then?" Osomatsu sighed. He was tired and hungry, too.

"Huh?" Totty checked his phone only to find that it had ran out of battery, "Ah, sorry."

"Jyushi, too", Ichi mumbled, "I called you many times."

Jyushi checked his phone. It was left on silent mode after the night. Jyushi had forgotten to put the voice back on.

"I forgot! Sorry!" Jyushi apologized.

"It's alright. Just remember it next time", Ichi huffed, hugging his little brother, "What were you up to anyway?"

"We saw this awesome balloon and chased it down!" Jyushi explained showing his big brothers the bright pink balloon the two had managed to chase down.

Osomatsu had called the two missing brothers.

They were sure to be on their way and would be there in mere seconds.

Choromatsu had sounded relieved to hear that his brothers were alright.

Osomatsu could hear Karamatsu sighing in relief in the background, too.

"Alright, cool balloon", Ichi said poking the thing, "What else?"

"Then we went to see the sights!"

"Without us?"

"Totty said he just had to take a couple of pictures."

"And that 'couple of pictures' ended up being a couple hundred?"

Totty blushed by Jyushi's side, "Y-Yeah, there were just so many things."

"They better be good", Ichi sighed. There was no changing his little brother.

"Of course!" Totty huffed, looking wounded by his brother's doubt.

"Brothers!" Karamatsu hugged the two youngest, tears in eyes.

Choromatsu came running after the second brother, "Don't do that ever again!"

"Promise!" the two brothers promised in unison.

"So, how about that Small World ride?" Osomatsu smiled, rubbing his nose.

"Now?!" Choromatsu screamed.

He couldn't believe it. They had just been reunited.

"Yeah!" Osomatsu laughed, "I mean, we still have some time before dinner with Aiko."

"Alright", Choromatsu huffed, "We decided to ride it today, after all."

The ride was awesome but the line was long.

The brothers were done with the ride with minutes to spare from their promised dinner time.

They had to run back to the inn.

Sitting by the table, the six brothers ate their delicious dinner.

Aiko was listening to the brothers' story about the day and its events.

Goro was sitting by Ichi's feet, wagging her tail.

"We had some plans for the day, didn't we?" Choromatsu asked.

"Yeah!" they all laughed.


	23. Chapter 23: The Last Day

It was the last day of the brothers' little vacation. They'd need to return to work tomorrow.

The six were up for a wet surprise when they woke up in the morning.

No, Karamatsu hadn't wet his bed, although he was in the habit of doing so from time to time. Even as a young adult, he just couldn't shake the habit.

It was Goro, who Aiko had let into their room.

Her mission, wake the brothers up and bring them downstairs for breakfast.

She licked the brothers' faces clean as a wish of good morning and then laid next to Jyushimatsu and Ichimatsu, who slept next to each other, looking proud of her achievement.

"What the hell?" Todomatsu mumbled.

Beauty treatments were fine but this wasn't one Totty was hoping for. Mud and cucumbers were fine, not dog drool.

Osomatsu had slept through the whole thing, only letting out a slight mumble before falling asleep once again. The brothers bet the oldest could even sleep through an earthquake.

Choromatsu touched his wet face, "Jyushi? Don't go licking people's faces."

Jyushi laughed, wrestling with Ichi, who was trying to get him out of bed, "It wasn't me! Goro did it!"

"I'm glimmering", Karamatsu admired his mirror image. The layer of drool did give him a glossy look but it was still gross.

"Gross", Ichimatsu mumbled. He didn't mind the greeting at all. Cats used to do it all the time.

"It hurts!" Totty screamed, Karamatsu was so gross. First chocolate, and now this?

Goro wasn't happy with the results of her work and was getting ready to do another round of licking when Osomatsu suddenly woke up.

"Breakfast!" the oldest stood up and made his way to the bathroom to wash his face and brush his teeth.

"Alright", Choromatsu sighed, he bet the oldest was sleep-walking, "Let's do that."

Goro barked happily in agreement.

Aiko had prepared the brothers a grand feast for breakfast, since they were already leaving.

She was going to miss the boys.

She had had fun talking to them and admiring how much the six little bundles had grown since she had last seen them. Matsuyo had done a great job.

"Good morning!" Aiko greeted the boys stumbling down the stairs.

Goro was already sitting by her owner's feet, wagging her tail.

"Good mor-", Osomatsu began, "Whats with this food?! There's so much!"

Aiko laughed, "I thought that I should make you a feast."

"You shouldn't have", Choromatsu blushed, sitting down by the table.

"But you're leaving today, aren't you? There should be enough for lunch boxes, too."

"Thank you. You're a lifesaver", Karamatsu smiled as he was handing food to his little brothers.

"No need to thank me! You're like family to me. Matsuyo would've made sure I fed you if nothing else. I had to do this."

"Mom is on a holiday. There's no way she could make sure you fed us", Totty pointed out.

"Oh, she has called me every evening to make sure I have", Aiko said, like it was a laughing matter, "She told me she would even swim here if necessary."

"Well, she's been overprotective lately", Choromatsu muttered, "She would swim here. That's for sure."

"Mothers", Karamatsu nodded, "Dad couldn't even try stopping her."

"I would've done the same for my two sons", Aiko smiled, looking like she was about to reminisce.

"You have children?" Jyushi asked.

"Yes, two sons", Aiko smiled sadly, "They both moved away as soon as they turned 18. Said they'd never want to inherit the inn."

Goro whined putting her paw on Aiko's leg.

"Sorry for asking", Ichi mumbled, apologizing on behalf of his little brother.

"It's alright! It's not like it matters now."

"Then, may I ask about your husband?" Choromatsu was curious. She had two children but the husband had never been mentioned. There must've been some pictures the brothers had missed.

"I adopted them", Aiko told them, "I and my husband were never able to have children of our own. We were all so happy together though, like a real family. Then there was the accident."

"Accident?" Jyushi asked.

"My husband got hit by a truck. He died instantly. The doctors told me he didn't feel a thing", Aiko sighed sadly, "The autopsy revealed that he had been suffering from cancer the whole time. It wouldn't have been curable. Then we thought that maybe he had done it all on purpose… He wouldn't have wanted us to suffer with him."

Jyushi tensed.

Ichi put a hand on his shoulder and whispered comforting words into his little brother's ear.

The fifth still didn't remember anything about his accident, just little scenes there and there.

"We grew apart after that, me and my sons", Aiko continued, "It's understandable. They adored my husband more than anything."

"You're strong, Aiko", Osomatsu smiled, "This food is great, too, but you're the greatest."

'Such a Casanova', Totty giggled.

"Thank you", Aiko smiled, "So, what have you planned for today? Let's change the topic to something more cheerful."

"Well, momma and papa didn't want us to go to Disneyland today", Totty told her, eyeing the second and third Matsuno.

Choromatsu and Karamatsu were both blushing. Well, they did overreact a bit. They admitted that. But was there any reason to remind them every single minute?

"So we decided to go to a park or something", Osomatsu finished.

"Totty wanted to climb a mountain but there are no good ones nearby", Jyushi added.

"I would've loved to climb one!" Totty was frustrated, "Fuji was the last mountain I climbed and it caused so much hassle, so I wanted to find one to climb with my brothers here. No luck I guess."

"A park seems like a nice idea. We can have another picnic", Karamatsu suggested.

Totty seemed like he was thinking about it. Then he suddenly screamed, "'The Aristocats'! Of course! I've been so dumb!"

"Huh?" Choromatsu sweat dropped, "What does that have to do with anything?"

"Ichi asked me if I remembered any Disney movies with cats, so I though and thought and now I've finally remembered!"

"There's the Lion King, too", Osomatsu mumbled, sounding tired.

Ichimatsu's eyes were sparkling. He hadn't remembered those movies and his searches didn't reach any results.

The brothers belonged to the old Disney generation with the hand-drawn animation. They hadn't watched any of the new 3D animation movies or anything, so their pool of characters was slightly smaller from the newer generation.

"We have to watch that when we get home! The 'Aristocrats'!" Jyushi cheered, happy for his big brother who had finally found some Disney cats.

"It's 'The Aristocats', Jyushi", Ichi corrected, already searching for information on the movies.

"We must watch the Lion King, too! It's a classic!" Osomatsu reminded.

"Agreed!" Karamatsu said. He had loved the movie when he was smaller.

"Let's buy the DVDs when we get home!" Totty cheered

Choromatsu sighed calculating how much their DVD shopping spree would cost them. Only if their old VHSs would work with today's equipment.

Ichimatsu suddenly stopped, "But if we're talking about watching movies with characters we like, shouldn't we also buy The Bug's Life?"

"Totally!" Totty agreed.

Jyushimatsu hadn't seen the movie, so he couldn't have known what the movie was about, "'The Bug's Life'?"

"You'll love it", Ichi reassured his little brother.

"Okay, but I really want to see the cat movie, too", Jyushi said.

"We'll watch that. Don't worry."

'Couldn't we just illegally download them from the internet or something…' Choromatsu was pondering, 'We don't have any extra cash for this!'

"What are you brothers talking about?" Aiko came back to the room. She had been putting away the dishes and packing her guests some lunch for their picnic.

"Movies we want to see when we get back home", Osomatsu answered, "And what we're going to do today."

"Disney?"

"Yeah, guess the atmosphere caused it but there's the nostalgia, too."

"I used to watch the old ones. I remember loving them despite being an adult already."

"It's the magic", Osomatsu winked.

Aiko laughed, nodding in agreement.

"Alright, we'll be going now!" Osomatsu said as the six were in the doorway, "We'll fetch our bags later, okay?"

"Of course. Goro will surely guard them for you. Have fun!" Aiko wished the six as she gave them their lunch boxes, "The forecast promised some rain, so be careful. I wouldn't want you six catching a cold. Matsuyo would kill me."

"Alright", Choromatsu promised, "We'll be careful. I have some umbrellas with me, too."

"I'll have a snack prepared for you when you come back. You must be hungry by then, anyways", Aiko waved the six.

Goro followed the Matsunos for a block before turning and returning to the inn.

Jyushimatsu was still slightly tense.

Ichimatsu knew it was because of what Aiko had said, about the accident his husband had been in.

The duo trailed behind the group.

"Ichi, I still don't remember the accident", Jyushi mumbled, his head hanging low, "I remember your voice but that's all."

Ichi sighed, his brother just couldn't let it be, "Do you really need to know?"

"Ichi, I need to know!" Jyushi sounded desperate, "I have these dreams where I see the truck closing in. Then it's all black."

"You chased after Batter, right?"

"Hmm, I remember that."

"Then there was the truck. The driver wasn't paying attention to the road, so he couldn't hit the brakes in time. You got hit."

Jyushi nodded. He remembered the car's horn and screaming, a lot of it.

"Are you sure you want to hear the rest?"

"I'm ready. I don't want to keep having these nightmares. I want to know the truth", Jyushi reassured his brother.

"After you got hit… The truck hit your left side. You rolled on the pavement, scraping your knees and hands. When you finally stopped, it felt like time had stopped altogether. You were bleeding, a lot. There was a cut on your head."

Jyushi took his brother's hand. For his comfort and Ichi's.

"When I got to you, I first thought you were dead. You wouldn't move or reply when I called your name. You had hit your head quite badly and lost consciousness."

"Was I out for long?"

"No, you woke up soon enough. You can't believe how relieved I was to see your eyes open and hear your voice. I'm not sure if you remember. You were really disorientated."

"I don't, but I remember your voice."

"I talked to you, trying to keep you awake until the ambulance arrived. But I couldn't do it, you fainted just when the vehicle pulled up."

"Sorry, I'm sure I tried my best."

"Don't apologize!" there were tears in Ichi's eyes, "It wasn't your fault!"

"It wasn't yours either."

"I called the others when we were in the ambulance. They were at the hospital in a flash."

"Even though they were working?"

"Yes, you're far more important than work. We saw you taken to the surgery. We waited and when you were done we heard the news from the doctor."

Jyushi's grip tightened.

"That you were in a coma with a broken hand", Ichi cried out, "It was your throwing hand, too."

"Thank you, for telling me", Jyushi smiled, he had come to terms with his condition already, "I'm happy I have such good brothers taking care of me."

"You're welcome. I'm sure you'll be able to throw 80 meters sooner than you might think."

"I'll do my best!"

"Hey! What are you doing back there?" Osomatsu shouted as he and the rest made their way to the duo, "What's with the waterworks?"

"Ichi told me what happened, with the truck", Jyushi explained.

Choromatsu sighed, "You idiots! We should've all talked together about this!"

"It's no good keeping it all to yourselves", Karamatsu added, "We want to know, too. We can't help if we don't know what happened."

"We're brothers, after all!" Totty added.

"Come on! Group hug!" Osomatsu cheered.

The six hugged for a good five minutes.

"We'll get through this together, right?" Choromatsu asked.

"Of course!" Osomatsu exclaimed, "So no more alone talking like this! Let us in!"

Ichimatsu smiled, crushed by Jyushi who was hugging him fiercely, "Hmm."

Jyushi was beaming in the middle of the hug.

He liked both giving and receiving hugs and his brothers were the best huggers he knew.

"It was Aiko's story, wasn't it?" Choromatsu whispered to the fourth when they broke the hug.

"Yeah, got him to think about the accident again", Ichi replied, keeping his voice down, "He had asked me about it earlier, too, but I didn't go into much detail back then. I was hoping that he would've remembered it on his own."

"But he has been having nightmares, so it's good you told him. Now, maybe, he can finally sleep in peace knowing what happened to him."

"The old doctor is the problem now. Jyushi has traumas because of him."

"Yeah, he's left his mark on him, despite the drug now being out of his system."

"He's going to court, right?"

"They're working on it. Don't worry."

"But Jyushi will have to testify, doesn't he?"

"I'll see what I can do about that."

The park was fairly empty, seeing that the forecast hadn't been the most promising for picnics and other outside activities.

There were a couple families with strollers and small children playing on the grass. Other than that, there weren't people in there.

The brothers were glad that there weren't.

The six tended to take a lot of space where ever they were going and generally disturb the others.

Today, they had brought a baseball with them.

"Should we begin by spreading the picnic mat, or should we play first?" Choromatsu stretched his hands, sore from carrying a bag full of essentials.

"Let's play Red Light, Green Light!" Totty suggested.

It was an easy game that everyone could take part in without any huge risks of someone getting hurt.

But knowing how the Matsunos played games, this was going to get nasty anyways.

"Daruma-san!" Jyushi cheered, he liked this game.

"Who's the first one to cover their eyes?" Osomatsu asked, already trying to find a good tree or other thing they could use and a goal post.

"Rock paper scissors?" Karamatsu asked.

The brothers gathered around, "Rock paper scissors! Go!"

"Karamatsu!" Jyushi cheered. Karamatsu was always trying to do a move that would win them all, and in rock paper scissors, the odds of that weren't on his side.

"Alright, let's begin!" Karamatsu moved to stand next to a big tree and turned to it, closing his eyes.

"Daruma-san fell!" Karamatsu sang and turned around quickly to see if someone was moving at all.

He had to try and not to laugh. His brothers had all taken poses which were ridiculous-looking.

"C-Choromatsu, you moved", Karamatsu giggled.

"That's because you took so long! I was standing on one foot for god's sake", Choromatsu huffed as he joined his big brother by the tree.

"Daruma-san fell!" Karamatsu sang faster this time, "Jyushi! Does that count as moving?"

Jyushi was doing the water-thing, looking like a statue on a fountain. God knows where he had gotten the water from though.

"Jyushi himself isn't moving", Totty smiled, "So he's clear."

"And Ichi, quit with the cat poses", Karamatsu pointed out.

"I do what I want", was Ichi's simple reply, "It's not like it's against the rules or anything."

Karamatsu sighed, "Alright then. Daruma-san fell!"

The four brothers left were good.

There was absolutely no movement at all.

"Osomatsu! You're supposed to advance towards the tree, not stay still and lie down!" Choromatsu screamed at the oldest.

Osomatsu was lying on the grassy ground, seemingly paused in the middle of a belly scratching session.

"I'm not moving though!"

The game went on for good ten minutes before Totty had sneaked close enough to end it.

"Ha! Got you!" Totty cheered doing a little victory dance.

"Another round! Another round!" Jyushi waved his right hand.

"I'm hungry", Osomatsu whined, still lying on the ground.

"Shut it", Ichi mumbled, "Alright, Jyushi. I can be the one by the tree."

"Yay!"

Karamatsu and Ichimatsu switched places and a new round began.

"Osomatsu, you try playing this time", Ichi pointed out.

"Eeh? I don't want to", Osomatsu rose from the ground, brushing his pants clean.

"Osomatsu, play with us", Jyushi pleaded.

"Alright!" it almost seemed like Osomatsu got inflated or something when he sprung up, ready to give the silly game his all, "Come at me, bro!"

Choromatsu sweat dropped, "That's not how it works though."

The brothers played six rounds of the game.

One round for each of them to be the watcher.

Dark clouds had begun gathering onto the sky as the game progressed.

And when it was finally time for lunch, the first raindrops fell from the sky.

"Rain?" Osomatsu had been drooling over his boxed lunch when a cold droplet hit his nose.

"Let's find some shelter", Choromatsu told his brothers, looking around for one.

"What about the tree?" Karamatsu suggested.

"This looks like it's going to be a heavy rain. We need to find a proper one."

"A shrine!" Jyushi exclaimed.

"Yes, a shrine would be great", Choromatsu nodded.

"No, there's actually one right there", Ichi added, pointing to a dense forest.

And there was, a shrine. It wasn't a small one either, but a respectable sized one. They would all fit under its roof.

"Alright, let's go there", Choromatsu nodded.

The six scrambled to safety from the rain.

The shrine was damp and the floorboards were full of moss.

Choromatsu was quite sure he could smell mold, too, but he wasn't going to complain. They had shelter and that was the main point.

"Let's eat!" Osomatsu clapped his hands together opening the lid of his box.

The food was, of course, delicious and the brothers ate it happily.

When the six were finishing their food, there was a meow.

Ichi perked up.

A stray cat peeked behind a stone statue, licking its lips.

"Kitty!" Jyushi pointed at the shabby cat coming their way.

Ichi was ready with a can in hand. He had been saving it for this moment. It had all been for this moment.

The cat circled around Ichi's feet, purring loudly.

Totty was offering the cat a bite of his food in hopes of getting some good cat photos.

"Don't tease him!" Jyushi told his little brother, "Kitty is hungry!"

Ichimatsu rushed to open the can and poured it on his, now empty, lunch box.

"Here you go", he offered the meal to the cat, who seemed happy.

The cat wolfed down the food.

"Slow down, kitty", Karamatsu told the stray, "You're going to get a stomach ache."

Ichi was petting the cat carefully as it was finishing the meal.

A steady purr resonated from the small feline.

Then suddenly, there was another meow, and another.

Two other strays poked their heads from behind the same statue the first one had been behind just a couple of minutes earlier.

Ichi was blushing. He didn't know what to do.

The cats were coming for him but he only had one can with him.

'What am I going to do?!' he had an inner debate.

Then he suddenly remembered that he had a bag of dried sardines with him.

He furiously dug into his pockets and pulled out the bag.

He was glad the oldest brother, Osomatsu, hadn't found his cache.

"Here", Ichimatsu offered the two cats some of the fish.

They took it happily and began munching away, meowing while doing so.

The sound was absolutely adorable.

Totty was filming the two, planning on posting it to the internet afterwards. He was going to get so many views.

Osomatsu was sad that he wasn't the one getting the fish. He really liked the brand Ichi carried with him.

Jyushi was petting the cat that had eaten the canned food, with Choromatsu, who was looking really concentrated.

Karamatsu was polishing his sunglasses, humming an unfamiliar tune.

The rain had begun to pour down, wetting the ground and nature around it.

The brothers were glad they had managed to find a shelter from the falling water.

If they had decided to go and climb a mountain for some odd reason, they would've been wet and cold by now. Thank god there were no tall hills nor mountains nearby, otherwise the youngest would've surely made them all go no matter the forecast.

Luckily, the rain ended before the brothers' train was supposed to be leaving.

The six ran back to the inn after buying the shrine's cats some more food.

The three felines would've clearly liked to come with the brothers but settled with the offerings.

Ichimatsu would've liked to take the cats with him but was stopped by the other five saying they already had enough cats back home.

"We're back!" Choromatsu screamed, slamming the inn's sliding door open, "Sorry, we're in a hurry."

Aiko ran from the kitchen to greet the boys, "I was getting worried! You aren't late yet, aren't you?"

"No, no, but if we don't keep up a good pace, we're going to be", Karamatsu told her.

"Then you better hurry up!" Aiko was beginning to get stressed, "I'll go get your snacks. Goro has the bags."

"Thank you", the brothers told her, watching her go.

Goro tried to drag the bags to the boys, before the six came and carried them themselves.

"Thank you, Goro", the brothers all pet and scratched the dog.

She seemed happy as she was wagging her tail with eyes closed in delight.

"We got you something", Ichi told the dog, "It's a little gift from us all. A thank you for keeping us all safe during the nights."

Goro's black eyes turned to Ichi, who dug a plastic bag he had with him.

A huge bone emerged.

"We thought about getting a cucumber but they were all too small", Ichi smiled as he saw the dog's excited reaction.

Goro was doing a little dance, tapping her front paws in a rhythm.

Even Ichimatsu had to admit, the dog looked absolutely adorable.

Goro took the huge bone into its mouth not caring about its enormous size.

The bone hardly fit into the animal's mouth. It was that big.

Goro then continued her little dance whilst holding the bone. She almost knocked over two plants in the progress.

"Boys! I made you some sandwiches", Aiko emerged from the kitchen with a packet that contained the so said snacks.

"Thank you!" the boys cheered.

"It's been really fun staying with you", Choromatsu began.

"Great food", Osomatsu nodded.

"Great stories", Karamatsu continued.

"Goro!" Jyushi exclaimed.

Ichi just nodded in agreement.

"Mom won't be swimming here soon. She may enjoy the rest of her holiday with dad. You've been taking care of us that well", Totty smiled.

Aiko smiled brightly, "Aww, you boys! You're very welcome! Feel free to come back anytime!"

"Hug!" Jyushi cheered.

The rest agreed and they squeezed all seven into one big, warm hug.

"Be safe", Aiko told the six.

"We will", Choromatsu reassured, "I'll send you a message when we get home."

"Do that."

"Well, we really need to get going now, or we'll be late", Osomatsu pointed out.

The brothers took their bags and began the short journey to the train station.

Aiko waved the brothers goodbye while Goro howled.

"It's good to know there are still so many nice people in the world", Karamatsu fixed the sunglasses on his nose.

"True", Choromatsu nodded, "First Granny then Aiko."

"My doctor is nice, too!" Jyushi pointed out.

'The second doctor', the five brothers would've liked to add.

"Yes he is", Ichi agreed.

"Totty, did you take those pictures for Granny we promised?" Osomatsu asked.

"Of course!" Totty huffed proudly.

"Ah, the train!" Choromatsu screamed.

Their train was already on the station.

"Run!" Karamatsu screamed.

And they ran, fast.

Even Osomatsu. He didn't feel like staying and waiting for another ride home or pay for that.

"Made it!" Osomatsu sighed in exhaustion when the sixtruplets were finally sitting in the train.

"That was a close call", Choromatsu huffed.

"Too close!" Karamatsu added.

"Never again", Ichi looked dead, he really didn't enjoy running.

Jyushimatsu was laughing alongside Totty.

Todomatsu did jogging while Jyushi had run his fair share of homeruns.

"We really should exercise more", Totty laughed.

"But we're NEETs though", Osomatsu pointed out, "There's no way."

"True", Totty sighed, "Never mind."


	24. Chapter 24: Granny's Turn

Granny turned to return back to work, after the six brothers had disappeared from her sight.

They had promised to text her when they had arrived to their destination. Not that Granny didn't trust them, it was simply to reassure her.

Todomatsu had also promised to take a lot of pictures. Maybe there would be a couple she could print out and hang on the walls.

She had no kids so she was kind of excited about the pictures. She thought that maybe this was what mothers felt when taking and framing pictures of their children.

Granny was about to step back in, when Batter and ESP Kitty ran to her, meowing loudly.

'You forgot something!' ESP Kitty rolled around Granny's feet, chirping loudly.

"Ah! The cats!" Granny remembered, "But wouldn't Ichi have fed them before leaving? Maybe he was busy."

Granny send a text, just to make sure she wasn't over-feeding the stray cats.

"Good thing you reminded me, Kitty! Ichimatsu didn't have the time to feed them before leaving."

ESP Kitty purred, puffing his chest in pride.

"I have some great cans in the kitchen. Let me go get those", Granny went into the house, "Do you want anything?"

Batter jumped onto the counter.

"That's a 'yes' I presume", Granny laughed, opening a can of tuna for the two hungry felines, "Don't tell Ichi though. He'll say I've spoiled you rotten."

It almost looked like the two cats smirked.

Such weird animals. Cats that is.

ESP Kitty ate his meal happily, while Batter gingerly took slow bites out of his.

"Batter, don't be so picky", Granny scolded the cat, "I gave you fresh tuna once. Once! And now you've become such a gourmet."

Batter huffed.

Excuse me, he happened to like fresh food that's all.

"That's what you get for adopting a stray", Granny sighed with a slight smile dancing on her lips, "Well, should we offer your friends some of that gourmet of yours, too?"

ESP Kitty and Batter agreed with loud meows.

Batter was giddy with excitement. He hadn't seen his friends in ages.

Yes, stray cats had their own community. Everyone knew each other and so on.

Luckily, Granny's joints were doing well today.

Otherwise the cats would've needed to come to her door if they wanted any food.

The weather was nice.

Granny had been watching the forecasts like a hawk after learning that the brothers were going on a vacation.

She didn't want them to suffer from bad weather on their trip after all.

The three, yes the cats had insisted on coming with her, entered a dark alleyway which Ichimatsu had showed Granny a couple of days ago.

He had told her that it was the place where he fed the cats most often.

But Granny couldn't see even a whisker of a cat, there were no cats on the alleyway.

ESP Kitty jumped onto a trash can and meowed loudly.

It sounded something between a growl and a scream.

Then there was movement, a lot of it.

The voice must've been some sort of a call, seeing cats were popping up like mushrooms in rain.

Soon there were at least ten cats swarming around Granny's feet, rubbing their scents on her.

Batter watched them. He'd need to make sure to cover up those scents later.

Some of the cats even tried to rip the plastic bag containing the cans of food from Granny's hands.

The bravest ones climbed up her legs in attempt to get the food served faster.

Granny had had enough of this, "Calm down! There's enough for everyone!"

The cats got spooked by the loud noise.

The normal food source had never raised his voice on them.

Granny sighed, "Just calm down and wait. I'll give you your food."

She dug around the plastic bag, taking out five cans of cat food and a bag of treats.

"I'm going to spoil you", she muttered as she opened the cans and placed the contents on plastic plates.

The cats went wild when Granny finally gave them the permission to eat.

"And Ichi told me he feeds you every day", Granny smiled, "You eat like you've been starved for weeks."

The food was soon gone and the cats content.

They all purred around Granny happily, cleaning themselves.

Two of them had gone to greet Batter, their old friend, with head butts and purrs.

One of them had no left ear while the other one's tail had clearly been bitten or cut off.

"Your friends?" Granny asked Batter as she crouched down next to the cats.

Batter meowed, 'Yes, they were worried where I had been.'

"Your little friend here is staying with me", Granny smiled, patting the cat without the left ear, "I can tell you he is content."

'You should come live with Granny, too!' Batter purred.

Granny could tell what her cat was saying seeing the reactions of the two strays.

"Oh no, no, no!" she laughed, "I'm not taking in another stray!"

"At least not that fast after the first one", she added mumbling.

Batter was watching her with his huge, yellow eyes.

"My neighbours and customers will think that I've become the crazy cat lady!"

Now all the three cats stared at her.

Too intense!

Then the one without a tail sneezed, loudly.

Granny got concerned, "Are you sick, kitty? Let me see."

She lifted the surprisingly limp cat to her lap and felt the feline all around.

The cat was a small female and she was really skinny.

Too skinny for Granny's liking.

She liked her kids nice and chubby.

Granny sighed, "Okay, I'll take you to see a vet. I guess I need to take your friend along, too."

The three purred in delight.

"But first, a bath for all three", Granny added with a smirk, "You stink."

ESP Kitty was done greeting all of his and Ichi's friends when Granny told him they had to leave.

"I'll come feed you again tomorrow", Granny reassures the many felines clinging to her pants.

'Maybe even later today', she thought to herself, 'Just to make sure the cats are alright.'

The five made their way back home.

Granny was getting some long stares from the passers-by.

She was followed by a miscellaneous group of dirty cats, after all.

They were all nicely in line though, behaving nicely even to the dogs passing by with their walkers.

"Home sweet home", Granny unlocked the door to her house, letting the four cats in.

"I need to send Ichi a text and ask him if you two have any names", Granny mumbled, taking off her shoes.

She rolled up her sleeves and went to get the bath ready.

Luckily, she already had some soap for cats and enough food for them all.

She'd need to get some futons ready though. For the cats to sleep on.

There was no way her new guests were going to sleep on the floor.

"Here, kitty, kitty, kitty!" Granny sang, calling the cats.

Batter knew what was coming and came running.

It wasn't that he enjoyed bathing. He was afraid of what would come if he disagreed.

ESP Kitty followed, albeit slowly.

The two strays followed after the second call.

They were faced with a foamy tub.

But Granny didn't give them any time to wonder what it was meant for.

She scooped the two dirtiest cats up and dropped them into the tub.

"Now, now! Calm down!" she smiled when the two began their struggle, "It's just water."

ESP Kitty was clearly trying to reassure the two of the waters innocence.

The two finally calmed down, after five minutes of intense struggle.

The cat with only one ear even seemed to like the feeling of soap being rubbed onto her fur.

TLC was in order for the two new arrivals and Granny was sure to give them just that.

Yes, Granny now had two girls and two boys with her.

Two tough girls.

After wrapping the two, now clean, cats in towels and into cat burritos, it was ESP Kitty and Batter's turn.

Batter jumped in.

ESP Kitty had to be lifted into the tub.

"Good boys", Granny rubbed the shampoo into the cats' fur, "You're going to smell so good after this."

The pet soap was lavender scented. Just the way Granny liked it.

After the initial bath, it was time to use the blowdryer.

All four seemed to like the warmth the machine provided them with.

ESP Kitty even flipped onto his back to enjoy it more.

Granny carefully brushed the two strays.

What the other one lacked in ears, she made up with fur.

She had fairly long, ginger tabby fur.

She must've been at least partly a fine breed.

Maybe a stray had had kittens with a housecat.

Or then both of the parents were strays.

As sad as it sounded like, it was highly possible.

The amount of domestic cats released had increased.

The one with the stub of a tail had a beautiful, thick fur, colored grey.

"Good girls", Granny smiled, petting the cats.

The five were done and all clean.

"I'm going to get you two a futon to sleep on", Granny told the two girls, "Then I guess we need to go see the vet."

Just when Granny was done placing a bright, flower printed blanket on the floor next to her bed, there was a message from Ichimatsu.

There were no futons available, so thick blankets had to do for the night.

'Oh, those two? Why? You going to adopt them, too, or something? No, they have no names yet. Feel free to give them ones. :3', the message said.

After she was done staring at the smiley Ichi had used, Granny had to admit, yes, she was probably going to adopt the two girls.

She had already managed to fall in love with the two.

She quickly typed a reply, telling him she'd come up with something and that she was going to see a vet next.

A reply came in two minutes.

It told Granny to go see the doctors of the shelter he was working in and mention his name. The doctors there would surely have time for Granny and her cats.

Granny was happy.

There would be no stupid lines to wait in.

She'd get the girls back in no time, too.

"Let's go", Granny told the two cats, "I have no carriers, so I guess we need to just waltz in."

The cats didn't seem to care.

Now that Granny thought about it, it probably wouldn't have been wise to cram two stray cats into a crate.

So the five walked, getting stares once again.

Walking into the shelter, the workers all stopped what they were doing and stared the group.

Granny walked to the counter without a care, "I was instructed to come here by Matsuno Ichimatsu. I need you to check my two cats."

The young man behind the counter had a light bulb light on his head, "Aa, Ichi! Yes, he works with us. Really great with the cats, too."

"Yes, he ordered me to come here with my cats."

"Alright, we have a doctor available right now", the man smiled, "Room three. I'll show you the way."

"Thank you", Granny smiled, following the worker into a room.

The cats followed her like ducklings would their mom.

A doctor was sitting in the room, feeding a small kitten when Granny was escorted to the room.

"A friend of Ichi's. She has two cats you need to look at", the young employee said before turning back, closing the door behind him.

"Two cats?" the doctor asked her, turning to face her on his office chair, "Where are the crate- Oh, there they are!"

The four cats were sniffing around the room curiously.

"But am I drunk or what? I'm seeing four cats, not two. Double vision?"

Granny smiled, "My cat and Ichi's cat wanted to come along. Here's Batter and ESP Kitty."

"So that's the famous ESP Kitty I've heard so much about!" the doctor exclaimed as he carefully put the kitten he had been feeding on a heated blanket.

"Yes, but he isn't your patient today", Granny told him, "These two girls are."

She pointed to the two cats sniffing the doctor's shoes.

"Strays?" the doctor saw the telltale signs.

"Yes, picked them up today", Granny nodded, "The one without a tail has the sniffles."

"Alright, let's see what we can do about that", the doctor lifted the cat in question on his table.

After looking in the cat's mouth and every other thing humanely possible, the doctor nodded, taking the other cat and repeating the same treatment with her.

"The first one had the sniffles but I can give you some medicine for that. The other has an ear infection", the doctor explained, petting the two cats, "They're both really thin and their nails are in a bad condition."

Granny agreed. The cats were thin.

"Did you notice any fleas when you bathed them?"

"No. I did remove some tics though."

"Good. Strays tend to have both but I see these two were lucky. The parasites cause serious anemia which can be dangerous for small animals like cats."

Granny only nodded, petting Batter sitting on her lap.

"I'll check them for internal parasites, too. I'll need a blood sample for that."

"Good luck."

The doctor was going to need that.

The strays were hardly used to being handled and now he was going to stick a needle in them.

"I'll need to give them their shots, too, so I guess I need the luck", the doctor laughed, taking out the equipment needed.

The grey cat was the first in line since she seemed to not be affected by the environment.

To be honest, it seemed like she was about to fall asleep on the doctor's desk.

The cat screamed when the needle pierced her skin and again when the doctor gave her the necessary shots.

The ginger cat tried to run away after hearing her friend's screams.

"Don't worry, it's your turn next", Granny caught the cat by the neck before she could make it under the chair.

"Come on, Van Gogh, it's your turn", the doctor smiled, taking the cat from Granny, switching it to the grey cat.

"Too bad she's a female", Granny pointed out, having understood the reference.

"Yeah", the doctor smirked, "Do the cats have names?"

"Not yet but I'm taking suggestions."

While the doctor checked the results of the blood tests, Granny comforted the two cats.

She actually had three cats on her lap and one curled on her shoulders.

It was crowded to say the least.

"Hmm… How does Stubby sound?" Granny asked the grey cat, "I mean I can't come up with anything more fitting."

The cat replied by meowing happily.

"Stubby it is", Granny smiled, "How about Ginger. It sounds a bit too superficial though. Van Gogh would've been better."

Ginger seemed to do just fine with the cat, seeing she pushed her head against Granny's hand, purring loudly.

"Well, I guess any name will do for now. Better than being nameless strays, isn't it?"

Granny sent a picture of her feline-filled lap to Ichimatsu, telling him she had come up with names for the cats.

'Cliché but appropriate', was the reply she got, 'PS. cute cats.'

Granny sighed. All cats were cute in Ichi's eyes.

"Good news!" the doctor cheered as he emerged from another room, "There are no heart worms or anything present in the cats' systems. They're a little anemic and skinny, nothing else."

"Thank goodness", Granny sighed.

She wasn't sure if she could've afforded the medicine.

"Just make sure the two darlings get enough food and rest and you're good. I'll give you the medicine now", the doctor typed something into his computer, "I'd suggest you buy the two some special food for now. To eat until their weight is back to normal. They usually have some necessary vitamins in them, too."

"Alright. Guess our next stop is the pet shop then."

The doctor laughed, "Yes it is. I checked the girls' privates, too, by the way. The ginger one is spayed already. You can come back later and we'll do the surgery on the grey one for free. We do so with strays."

"Thank you", Granny was happy to hear that.

Little kittens were the last thing she needed in her life right now.

"You're welcome. Ichimatsu has been a great help in the spaying and neutering progress of the strays in this area."

"I bet he has", Granny could just imagine Ichi bringing random strays to the doctor one after another without even batting an eyelash.

Granny and the doctor bid each other farewell and Granny went to pay for the visit.

"No, no! You're a friend of Ichimatsu and helping the stray animals. We couldn't possibly take money from you", the young man working by the desk told her.

"But-"

"No buts! It's like adopting. We don't take payment from people adopting from us and the first checkup is free, too. Let's just say you adopted these two from us through a little twist. The medicine if a gift from us, to the cats."

Granny laughed. A twist indeed.

"Thank you so much! I'll be sure to donate", Granny promised, "I run a small bakery. Do you think the animals here would like some fresh treats? I could try some new recipes."

"I bet they'd love that!" the young man exclaimed, "The workers here would appreciate a little something, too. Just for your information."

"Let's see what I can do about that", Granny smirked as she exited the building.

The pet shop was luckily near the shelter, so the four didn't need to walk for that long.

Granny was glad about that. Her legs were beginning to get sore.

"Hello!" a worker smiled when Granny entered the building.

She stopped, stunned to silence by the old woman's escort.

Four cats in a perfect line.

"Hello", Granny smiled, unaffected by the stare the worker was giving her, "I'm here to buy three collars, three cat beds and some special food."

"A-Alright. I'll show you our selection."

While Granny shopped for the essentials, the four cats had wandered to the fish section.

All four stared intensely at the colorful fish in the tanks.

The goldfish seemed to be their favorite.

Stubby even tried to catch one, before Granny came to stop her.

"No, bad girl! We're not here to fish", she scolded the cat, who looked guilty.

Granny was done with her shopping.

She had a huge bag with her, filled with the goods she had bought.

"We better get you nameplates for your collars. You, too, Batter. You've gone without one for long enough."

In the end, Batter got a red collar, Ginger a green one and Stubby a yellow one.

Granny got them nametags with her information in them, so that if the cats were to get lost, they could be returned back home to her.

"Then we go home", Granny huffed.

The bag of food was a bit too heavy for Granny to carry so the cats decided to try and help the best way they could.

They took the bag containing the beds and began to drag it, getting it to their home without the plastic bag coming apart.

"Good cats", Granny sighed, stretching her back, "You really helped me out."

It almost looked like the cats were smiling, proud of their work.

"Now, would you like to try out the new food I got you?"

A loud meow.

"Alright! Line up."

After scooping up the food onto plates and serving the grub to the two strays, giving ESP Kitty and Batter their regular food, there was a content munching and purring coming from the four felines.

While the four were eating their dinner, Granny put the three new beds out for her cats.

ESP Kitty wasn't forgotten. He liked to sleep next to people, Granny was told.

Granny was going to allow that for the two days the cat was with her. Otherwise, she didn't let cats sleep on her bed.

She was an old lady after all. An extra weight on her abdomen could hinder her breathing.

Granny made something small for herself to eat before sitting down to watch the late evening news.

Despite not having worked today, she was very tired.

She'd be back to work tomorrow, when her childhood friend was due to arrive to help her.

But for now, she was going straight to bed after the program was over.

Granny showed the four cats to their beds before getting onto hers.

ESP Kitty jumped straight next to Granny's pillow and curled there to sleep.

Granny smiled at the cat's antics, shutting the bedside lamp and lying down.

The first half an hour was noisy.

The three cats sleeping on their respective beds next to Granny's bed were getting used to their beds, distracted by their weird smell.

ESP Kitty was already asleep, snoring lightly.

In an hour, the commotion died down and the three cats fell asleep.

They had all fallen asleep on one of the beds in one big pile.

Granny sighed, they had all the beds they needed, yet they decided to cram themselves on one single bed.

Well, at least they didn't choose a cardboard box or something move stupid.

When Granny was about to put her head on the pillow and fall asleep once more, she was disturbed by a small noise.

It was coming from the cat next to her, ESP Kitty.

He seemed to be crying in his sleep.

Granny had to take the cat on her lap and wake him up.

"Kitty, what's wrong?" Granny asked the distressed cat on her lap.

A small meow was the answer.

"Feeling a bit homesick maybe?" Granny scratched the cat's chin, "Should we call your owner? I bet he'd love to talk to you."

ESP Kitty seemed to be thinking about the suggestion, 'But he must already be asleep.'

"I think he'd wake up for you", Granny reassured the cat, "Come on, let's go to the kitchen and make the call."

ESP Kitty finally agreed and followed Granny into the kitchen.

Granny searched the number from her contacts list and pressed the call button.

There was a series of beeps before Ichimatsu picked up his phone, "Ichimatsu speaking."

"Hi! It's Granny here. I have a little kitty-cat who wants to speak with you", Granny explained.

"A weird time to call. Did something happen?"

"He's feeling a bit homesick. Can't seem to fall asleep."

"Give him the phone."

Granny smiled, placing the phone on the kitchen counter.

ESP Kitty quickly made his way to sit next to the device and meowed loudly.

"Hello, Kitty. Feeling lonely are we?"

The feline began purring loudly, chirping happily.

"I heard Granny got some new friends today. Are they being nice to you?"

Granny sat down with a mug of tea, placing a plate of milk down for the cat to drink.

Lactose free, of course.

The cat meowed happily.

"Aa, I see. Ginger and Stubby you say? Batter's old friends? Such nice names Granny gave them."

ESP Kitty seemed to agree.

Granny's only though was how Ichi could communicate with the cat.

"Are you behaving yourself? Not causing Granny any more trouble, are you?"

After a minute of silence, Ichi laughed, "Of course you aren't."

Granny was watching the cat. He seemed to calm down after hearing his owner's voice.

"What are you going to do tomorrow?"

A long meow.

"Aa, I see. You're going to help Granny with the shop? Have you asked for permission?"

Granny laughed, "Of course not! Maybe we could hold a cat café day or something with so many cats in my possession."

Ichi laughed, too, "I bet the customers would love it. I mean, you already have the tables and all in the shop. Why not give it a shot?"

"I'll need to make some upgrades to the shop to maintain the hygiene."

"Then you'll give the cat café a try?" Granny could hear the smirk in Ichi's voice.

"My neighbours will begin calling me the crazy cat lady of the block you know", Granny sighed.

"Sounds like nothing new. I mean I'm not a lady or anything but I know."

"Oh, shut it. You're the crazy cat man of the town", Granny laughed, "You know every cat in town despite only owning one cat."

"ESP Kitty isn't legally mine. He's my closest subordinate."

The cat in question purred beside the phone.

"Are you ready to go to sleep now?" Ichi asked the cat, "Granny must be sleepy, too. She had a long day today."

ESP Kitty seemed to be ready as he licked Granny's hand carefully, nudging it at the same time.

"I guess he is", Granny told Ichi.

"Good boy. You can call me any time you want. I'll try and answer. Good night you two. Have fun tomorrow."

"Thank you. Good night to you, too", Granny wished Ichi before ending the call.

ESP Kitty looked at her and meowed.

"Good thing he answered, huh? Come on, let's go back to bed. The rest must be worried."

The cat seemed to agree and jumped off the counter and raced to the bedroom and onto Granny's pillow.

He curled there and was asleep in seconds after Granny had joined him on the bed.


	25. Chapter 25: Part-Time Bulletin Board

Granny woke up to ESP Kitty licking her face.

His rough, pink tongue gently moved to Granny's dishevelled hair, trying to solve the mess of greying knots.

"Good morning to you, too", Granny smiled as she stood up.

There were three distinct lumps on the bed's end on Granny's feet, which moved when Granny moved to leave the warmth of the sheets.

Ginger, Batter and Stubby had moved onto Granny's bed somewhere during the busy night.

The three hadn't been on Granny's stomach, so she forgave the felines. She was going to have to remind them that they had their own beds to sleep in though. There was no need to join her.

Batter seemed to understand what Granny was thinking and quickly moved to join her on her way to the kitchen, meowing.

'I'm sorry', he tried to tell her. He hadn't meant to jump to sleep with her but the two newcomers had had difficulty sleeping.

Granny sighed, as she put a kettle on, "It's okay, just make sure you don't do it again."

Batter put his paws up.

It was either a sign of promise or he was begging for breakfast.

Granny smiled.

Cats could really be adorable.

As Granny was taking out the cans of cat food, the rest of the four cats ran to the kitchen.

They had clearly been in the middle of cleaning themselves up.

Ginger's lovely hair was partly sticking up while some of it was neatly arranged. She seemed slightly pissed off by the disturbance, while Stubby seemed nonchalant of the whole thing. Clean or not, she wasn't going to skip breakfast.

"Come on girls. You can clean yourselves up later", Granny told them, scooping up food on the cats' plates, "Teach Batter to do it properly, too."

Batter huffed. He could clean himself up. He just didn't do it often enough for Granny it seemed.

Granny laughed at her cat's antics.

After the five had eaten their breakfast, they crowded around the living room table to watch the morning news.

The forecast promised rain.

Granny was about to text the brothers to tell them but came to the conclusion that the six would at least watch the forecast before going anywhere, hopefully.

"I just hope they took umbrellas or something with them", Granny muttered, sounding slightly worried, "It's only drizzle today but they promised proper rain for tomorrow."

ESP Kitty meowed in agreement. He knew Ichimatsu didn't like rain at all.

After the news, it was time for the morning's stretches.

Granny liked the young and enthusiastic instructor who made the moves without even breaking a sweat.

A doctor had told her stretches were good for her.

Her aching joints seemed to like them, too.

The four cats stared at her when she made the moves carefully, minding her sore back.

'Yoga?' Batter questioned the moves his owner was making.

Ginger and Stubby tried to follow Granny's lead and make the stretches.

ESP Kitty was watching the three in amusement.

"Good girls!" Granny praised the two cats, "You must like yoga, too!"

Stubby meowed, stretching her long back.

Ginger decided it was time to resume the cleaning and began licking her fur clean.

Granny's childhood friend arrived later that morning before the first shift started.

"Yuuka!" he exclaimed as Granny opened the door to let him in, "You look younger every day!"

"I bet you're meant to say older, my dear Ichirou", Granny smiled, "It's nice to see you again. Come in."

Granny had known Ichirou since they were about seven. Their fathers had begun playing in the same team. The two children had come to see their games and train with them every day.

Although some of their other friends had laughed at their unusual friendship and hobby, the two remained friends all the same.

Granny could still taste the ice cream the two had always bought from a small store near the baseball fields during the hot summers. She could almost feel the summer daze and smell the hot air.

But now, both of their fathers had already slept away and only the two were left.

Ichirou lived in another town with her wife and an old dog.

The two had kept in touch all these years but had hardly gotten any time to meet in person.

Ichirou had aged gracefully. His dark grey hair, while still in place had begun to get thin. The wrinkles on his face only added to his sweet nature and his rough hands spoke of hard work.

"How's your wife?" Granny asked as the two sat down to drink some tea.

"Hanako? She's doing great! Back's beginning to bug her but she still does all the housework she did years ago", Ichirou laughed.

Granny laughed along at the man's carelessness, "Her back, too? Tell her to call me if she finds some miracle cure for that. Mine's been bugging me for years."

Ichirou's booming laugh echoed through the small room.

The four cats were beginning to get curious. They had ran away as soon as they had smelled an unknown scent, and more importantly, the unmistakable scent of a dog. Now all four were peeking from a doorway at the new arrival.

Ichirou happened to catch a glimpse of the group.

"Your cats?" he asked.

Granny blushed, she didn't really want to admit anything, "Three of them yes. I'm babysitting one for a friend."

"I always saw you as a dog person. A bummer", he laughed, "Come here kitties. I won't bite."

Batter was the most trusting one and soon made his way to the strange-smelling man. He sniffed his outstretched hand once, then again and accepted a pat to the head before jumping on the lap of his owner.

ESP Kitty came to them but didn't pay attention to the man. He simply jumped onto the table and curled there.

Ginger and Stubby seemed to be having an inner debate over whether to come to the room or not.

"I only adopted those two yesterday", Granny explained to the disappointed friend of hers, "The orange one is Ginger. The grey one is Stubby."

"As bad as ever with the names I see", Ichirou smirked.

Granny blushed again. She had always been horrible at naming things, she admitted. Her first teddy had been simply called 'Bear' after she had named it that.

"We need to get to work, not think about what I did when I was younger", Granny huffed, standing up.

"Oh, I'm ready. Hanako has been teaching me all kinds of recipes", Ichirou said proudly, following Granny to the shop.

"I have some basic breads and other things I do every day but we need to also think of what will be our daily special", Granny explained, as she took out huge lumps of dough from a fridge.

She had made the dough the day before as a precaution. She usually made the dough in the morning, too, making the freshest bread possible.

"How would something seasonal sound? I brought some berries with me. Hanako told me to give them to you."

"Hmm… How about pie?"

"Alright. I'm great at making pies, by the way", Ichirou winked, taking out some flour.

Granny sighed, "It's not a competition. We need to make the best pies, not the fastest-made pies."

Ichirou huffed, "Alright, alright."

The two friends ended up talking about everything and anything while they baked the goods for the day.

Through some weird twist, the topic moved to Granny's two current workers, especially Osomatsu.

Ichirou smiled fondly, "I remember being like that, too. I got my first proper job when I was over thirty."

"This is no laughing matter, Ichirou! The six need jobs! Today's society doesn't take jobless people that lightly. They treat them like trash!" Granny huffed.

"Calm down, Yuuka! I didn't mean it like that", Ichirou sweat dropped, "I could swear they're your sons or something by the way you treat them."

"But it's true! They ought to get jobs."

"Hmm, that's true, but I like to think that people all have their own pace", Ichirou mumbled in thought.

"You two would get along so well, you know", Granny sighed.

"How about asking your customers? They could have something Osomatsu could do", Ichirou pointed out, "I mean, it doesn't need to be anything big. He could just mow a lawn or something. Things old people are beginning to have trouble doing themselves."

"Jyushimatsu does help me with my garden from time to time… but could Osomatsu do the same?"

"At least give him the chance! It's not your garden he would be mowing", Ichirou laughed, kneading a huge clump of dough, "And besides, he'd also just keep them company. I know many old people whose family is too busy to visit them regularly."

"You do have a point there. I was lonely before the six of them appeared in my life", Granny nodded with a smile, "But how can we get the word out?"

"Hmm… A Part-time Bulletin Board!" Ichirou suddenly shouted.

"A part-time what?"

"Bulletin Board! Your customers can write the job they're offering and their contact info on a piece of paper and stick it on the board. Then, Osomatsu can come and pick out the ones he wants to do!"

"What about the ones he doesn't want to do?"

"Didn't you say one of the six was working a night shift? Tell him to quit and begin doing those! And I bet there's no rush to do any of the jobs. We old people have all the time in the world you know."

Granny sweat dropped, "How can you out of all people come up with something so marvelous?"

They both laughed.

They'd put up a bulletin board for the brothers before the first shift would begin and tell the regulars what it was about when they'd arrive.

The board, just as the two friends had expected, was a huge success.

After telling her regulars that Osomatsu would be the one doing the work, the old ladies offered him jobs at tasting their goods.

"He can taste my carrot cake!" one of them had told her with a smile, "I'm afraid it has a bit too much spices in it for my friends. He can test if that's the case."

"He could mow my lawn, then drink some tea and just talk with me for a while!" said another.

"He could come and help me clean around the house! Then we'd just stop after making more mess than clean up", laughed one.

"I'm sure he'd love that!" Granny told them all, explaining them what they had to write on the board for Osomatsu to read.

Granny saw it as a perfect idea. Osomatsu could eat pretty much anything and the old ladies, who weren't that confident in their skills, could get someone to judge their goods before their guests could taste them. He was also a very good talker and got along with pretty much everyone.

She couldn't wait to reveal the board to the six brothers. They'd be so happy.

The two had decided to reveal the board when the six where back from their vacation. No earlier.

She also wanted to talk with Todomatsu about an offer his manager had made the other day. He had suggested that Granny began making some pastries for them to serve with their coffee in the café.

Of course she had been super excited but the work load was a problem. She wasn't young and full or energy anymore, she admitted that. She simply couldn't make enough pastries to distribute outside her shop.

Jyushi would need to learn to bake by himself if that was going to ever happen. He was able to mold the bread but would either burn it or bake it for a too short period of time. Either way, his skills in the kitchen weren't meeting Granny's customers' standards just yet. Maybe with little practice.

The two shifts were soon over and the two childhood friends found themselves sitting in Granny's living room drinking tea.

"I wonder what the boys will say", Ichirou said, sipping his tea carefully, "About your customers offering them work."

Granny smiled fondly, petting Batter who was sitting on her lap, "I wonder. I bet Osomatsu will hug the living hell out of me. I've been a bit strict with him lately, after he made a mess in my shop chasing some poor dog around."

Ichirou could see the scene in his mind, "Haha! He'll think you have something up your sleeve after you offer him jobs like that! He will think the whole board is a joke meant for revenge."

"Hey! I'm not that mean!" Granny blushed.

Ginger and Stubby seemed to agree with their owner, seeing they were hissing at Ichirou from under the table.

"See? The cats agree with me", Ichirou snickered.

"I don't think they agree with you", Granny told him, "They agree with only me, their lovely owner."

Ichirou sighed and gave up. He knew how his friend could be like and decided that retreating would be the best move right now.

"Jyushimatsu plays baseball. Did I tell you that?" Granny suddenly asked, smiling proudly.

"He does? Is he any good?" Ichirou questioned with a smirk. Of course he had known, Granny wouldn't stop telling him about how 'his boy' could almost throw 80 meters or how he could hit homeruns like she could bake bread.

"Of course he is! I've even showed him my father's notes."

"Then he must be good", Ichirou agreed, "I remember your father writing those notes down. My old man did some, too, but they weren't as good. Said he'd use them to train me to become a pro someday."

"Cause your father was lazy. Mine took baseball seriously", Granny smirked.

"I guess so!" Ichirou laughed wholeheartedly.

The two new members of Granny's family were still sulking under the table.

Granny believed they were partly jealous of her friend, who was taking all her time away from the cats.

Ichirou had tried to pet the cats or scratch under their chins a couple of times, but was met with hisses and swatting paws. He had quickly given up and moved to quietly sipping his tea and giving ESP Kitty sitting on the table some pets.

ESP Kitty forgave the man's rough movements. He was used to men and rough treatment. The fifth Matsuno brother, who liked to pet him, wasn't very gentle with his moves. The cat knew Jyushimatsu was trying though and let him pet his back whenever.

Batter stared at the two from Granny's lap, trying to come to a conclusion about the man's behavior. He seemed nice enough to approach but being a former stray had left its mark on the cat. He had some serious trust issues.

"I better get going now", Ichirou told Granny after checking a text message he had gotten from his wife, "Hanako texted me and asked when I'd be back."

"She's feeling lonely, isn't she?" Granny smiled, "It's okay. I'll be getting my workers back tomorrow, too."

Ichirou laughed, "You're way too fond of the six. You should be encouraging them to grow up, not treat them like your kids."

Granny blushed. She wasn't going to admit anything. He did have a soft spot for cute animals and helpless sixtruplets, it seemed.

"Oh well. Call me if you need anything", Ichirou smiled as he was putting his shoes on to leave.

"I will. Tell Hanako I said hi", Granny told him, "She still has to tell me her secrets. How can she not suffer from joint pain like I do?"

"She's younger than you", Ichirou pointed out, laughing as he made his way back to his home, waving.

Granny sighed after Ichirou was out of sight.

She was tired.

Hanako had better share her magical remedies for her back or Granny was going to not be able to get off of bed some morning. She'd need to tell the cats to go and get Jyushimatsu. Then he'd need to lift her up so that she could make the day's baked goods. There was no way she was going to tolerate such embarrassment.

Granny served food to the hungry cats already waiting for her in the kitchen.

"He's a bit noisy isn't he?" Granny asked Ginger who was enjoying a male-free house once again, "He's always been like that. Ever since we met some seventy years ago. So there's no hope of him learning to be quiet."

ESP Kitty gave her a knowing look. If it was noise they were talking about, he knew all about it. Living with the Matsunos was nothing but quiet. The brothers could even turn a simple teeth brushing into a fight.

"Oh, right. I bet you know all about it", Granny said, "Six brothers can be loud, can they?"

The feline meowed in agreement, head in his food bowl.

It was a meal of tuna and chicken tonight.

Yes, the cats liked the two mixed up and served together as one big meal. Granny sometimes even added a special jelly made of pet-safe chicken broth. The cats absolutely loved it.

"Should I buy a new brand of dry food?" Granny asked the cat, knowing she was, in theory, talking to herself, "You haven't eaten any today."

She was referring to Batter and ESP Kitty.

Stubby and Ginger both ate their special food without complaint.

"I'm honestly spoiling you way too much", she sighed. She'd go and see if the pet shop had any better brands later.

Ginger yawned loudly. The day had been draining for the two newcomers, too, and they were both death tired.

Granny pet the two tired felines, "How about we watch the news and then go to bed? How does that sound?"

The cats seemed to like the plan, seeing they quickly finished their meal and jumped off the table to move into the living room.

"They haven't changed tomorrow's weather report. It still promises rain", Granny sighed, hoping the brothers had paid attention to the forecast.

Batter wrinkled his nose in disgust. Water wasn't one of his favorite things.

Granny yawned. Nothing interesting in the world today, it seemed.

Time to go to bed and sleep.

The three cats curled in their own beds this time, much to Granny's pleasure.

ESP Kitty curled next to Granny's pillow and began purring.

"Should we call Ichimatsu tonight?" Granny asked, scratching the cat from under the chin.

More purring.

A positive reply.

Granny made the call and the three spoke for about half an hour.

Ichi told them how the six brothers had gotten separated and how Choromatsu and Karamatsu had almost pissed themselves in their panic.

Granny laughed. Sounded like something the two would do.

He added that the two missing brothers had been alright all the time. Jyushimatsu had even caught himself a balloon.

Granny smiled, petting the purring cat sitting on her lap as they spoke with Ichimatsu. It was calming to hear how the six were doing.

Before ending the call, Granny wished the six brothers a nice end of the vacation, reminding Ichi to enjoy the rest of it.

Ichi promised he'd do just that.

He told Granny the brothers had even bought her a small souvenir. To which Granny blushed and told him they wouldn't have had to.

"I'll see you tomorrow then", Granny said.

"Mm, I'll come and pick up ESP Kitty at least. The train will arrive quite late, so we probably won't stay for long."

"Alright. See you."

"Yeah, bye."

Granny ended the call after hearing the beep on the other end.

"They seemed to be doing just fine", Granny smiled, lying down once again, shutting the bedside lamp.

ESP Kitty flopped next to her, meowing silently.

They both fell asleep with smiles on their faces.

All five happily slept in their own beds that night.


	26. Chapter 26: Back Home, Once Again

The late afternoon train was jam packed when the brothers boarded it. There was everything from families and single travelers on their way back home after a nice weekend.

The brothers' seating order was the same as when they came. The younger brothers sat on one side, while the older three sat on the other.

Suddenly, Todomatsu sneezed loudly.

Snot went flying everywhere.

Totty, along the rest of the brothers, was glad there was no one sitting on the seat in front of them.

"Bless you", Karamatsu wished the youngest with his usual politeness. He was busy polishing his sunglasses.

Jyushimatsu tried to wipe his little brother's runny nose with his long sleeves.

Ichimatsu calmly stopped him, telling his little brother that Totty would use a handkerchief if he needed to get rid of the snot.

"Thanks Jyushi but no thanks", Totty sweat dropped, "Let's not get your hoodie dirty because of me."

"Ah, alright", Jyushi agreed with a nod but continued to watch his little brother just in case.

"Choromatsu, do you have any painkillers? My head is killing me", Totty whined, sneezing once again.

The third brother dug around his bag, fishing out a packet of pills, "Sure. Are you feeling sick?"

Totty caught the item his big brother threw his way, "Yeah, got a terrible headache. I wonder if it's the bug that has been going around our café. Two of our employees were sick this week. I guess I'm the next one in line."

"Maybe. You better go straight to bed when we get home. The rain must've only made it worse", Choromatsu mumbled, focusing his attention on the book he was reading once more.

"Poor Totty. I'll nurse you back to health", Karamatsu offered with a smile, "Would you like some water with those pills?"

"No", Totty tsk'ed.

"Here", Ichi offered his little brother a bottle.

"Thanks."

Todomatsu fell asleep after taking the meds.

Choromatsu was texting Jyushimatsu's doctor about the upcoming trial with his little brother's old doctor. They were worried how the little sunshine would react when they told him he'd need to be a witness in his own case. Jyushi would have a check-up tomorrow, so they decided they'd talk more then. For now, the doctor told the six to rest.

Osomatsu was making a racket. As his little brother Karamatsu carefully fixed his hair, Osomatsu watched and waited until he was done just to mess the hair up again.

Karamatsu, being the kind brother he was, just took it. Of course with a tiny bit of annoyance.

Ichimatsu was watching the oldest brother with newfound respect. He wished he'd come up with such an evil plan himself.

"Stupid oldest brother, quit teasing Karamatsu", Choromatsu finally sighed, managing to get Osomatsu to stop and settle down.

As expected, Osomatsu quickly fell asleep with nothing interesting to keep him awake.

"Jyushi, could you wake Totty up. We'll be reaching our stop soon", Choromatsu asked his little brother, who was leaned on from both sides.

Totty sleeping on one side and Ichi snoozing on the other, "Home!"

Ichi wasn't asleep, he was just cat napping and quickly awoke to his little brother moving around.

"Totty, we're almost home!" Jyushi cheered, shaking his little brother.

"Huh?" Totty sounded tired and just about ready to simply turn his side and go back to sleep, "Yeah, yeah."

"Does your head still hurt?" Jyushi asked sounding concerned, messing Totty's hair up by patting it, "Should I carry you back home?"

"Jyushi, you can't carry him", Ichimatsu pointed out with a yawn, "Not with one hand."

Jyushi hummed in agreement, clearly thinking the situation through.

"You can help me carry Totty!" he concluded in the end.

Totty snickered, knowing there was no way Ichimatsu was going to be able to say no to anything the fifth brother wanted.

"Bu-but…", Ichi tried to mumble, "I need to carry ESP Kitty."

"It's alright. I can walk just fine", Todomatsu laughed, patting Jyushi's head, thanking him for the offer.

Soon afterwards, the conductor announced that the brothers' station would be the next one.

The six got their bags out and moved to the doors.

Luckily, there weren't many people leaving in this station.

Jyushimatsu jumped onto the platform dragging his luggage after him. It made a tremendous noise when it connected with the stone floor and spooked many people standing on the platform.

"Calm down", Ichimatsu told his brother despite shaking with excitement himself. He was going to be reunited with his cat real soon and he could hardly wait.

"Alright, we need to go see Granny first", Choromatsu said, "Totty, do you need to go straight home?"

"I can take you", Karamatsu suggested.

"Granny's house is along the way, isn't it? I'll come with you. I have the souvenirs to give her", Totty replied, determined to at least show Granny some of the pictures he had taken.

"Oh no you're not!" Osomatsu the big brother could tell what the youngest had in mind, "We're going straight home after getting ESP Kitty! No pictures, nothing!"

"The souvenirs?" Totty gave Osomatsu the best puppy eyes he could.

Osomatsu faltered, then sighed, "Alright, you may give her the souvenirs."

"And a couple-"

"No pictures!" Osomatsu and Choromatsu screamed in unison.

The brothers decided to knock this time.

Using the key sounded like a bad idea this late at night.

They'd give Granny more than just her souvenir. They'd give her a heart attack.

There was the sound of many tiny feet scurrying on the other side of the wooden door. Then began the scratching and meowing.

Choromatsu was quiet for a moment, "That sounds more like an army of cats than just two."

"Ah, yeah, Granny got three cats now", Ichimatsu remembered he hadn't told his brothers about it.

"Three kitties?" Jyushi asked, sounding gradually more and more excited.

"Hm, she adopted two strays about two days ago. They're called Ginger and Stubby."

"Kitties!" Jyushi cheered.

The cats meowed loudly from the other side of the door.

Granny opened the door. She was wearing her light pink nightgown and had her hair wrapped up in a towel.

"Sorry to disturb you this late", Choromatsu had the manners to apologize, "We didn't come while you were in a shower or something, didn't we?"

Granny laughed, "It's alright! I'm happier than anything to see you six. No, I was just about to go get some tea."

The cats bolted out of the door and began circling around the brothers.

Granny was afraid that the two girls would run away somewhere, so she kept her attention focused on them.

ESP Kitty rubbed his sleek body against Ichimatsu's leg, meowing loudly, 'I missed you!'

"I missed you, too", Ichi told the cat as he lifted him up.

The two new arrivals were hiding behind Granny's legs, looking doubtful of the six identical brothers.

"Kitties!" Jyushi crouched next to Granny so that he could see the two better, "Pretty kitties!"

Stubby was the first one to react and reached out to sniff a hand Jyushi had outstretched towards them. After a good sniff, she carefully pushed her face against the palm of the hand and let out a small meow.

Ginger was quick to follow, now that Stubby had shown her she wouldn't get eaten by the man in the yellow hoodie.

"Good girls", Granny told the felines, "Didn't Ichimatsu tell you I got two more?"

"No", Totty said, crouching next to his brother to take some pictures with his phone.

"I forgot", was Ichi's simple explanation.

"Somehow I'm not surprised", Granny smirked, eyeing the blushing Ichimatsu.

"You were about to enjoy a nice cup of tea, weren't you? Should we leave and let you relax?" Karamatsu asked Granny, clearly trying to sound somewhat flirtatious.

"Do you have cake with that tea?" Osomatsu asked, ignoring Karamatsu completely and preventing Granny from even answering to him.

"I do, actually. Would you six like to drink something before heading back?" Granny asked the boys.

"Totty was feeling a bit sick on the way here, so it might be for the best if we headed straight home. Transmiting the disease to you would be the last thing we'd like to do to you", Choromatsu explained.

Granny dismissed the whole thing, "If I get sick, it's not your fault. Come on in. I should have a good blend of tea somewhere just for colds."

There was no arguing against Granny. The brothers were going in whether they liked it or not.

"Cakes!" Osomatsu cheered, jumping up and down in excitement.

Ichi was carrying ESP Kitty while Jyushimatsu was carrying both Ginger and Stubby, Batter sitting comfortably on his head.

Totty just had to take a picture of the six. Too cute.

"Here you go, Totty. The blend I talked about", Granny gave the youngest Matsuno a teabag and poured water into his cup.

"Thank you", Todomatsu smiled and dunked the bag into the hot water watching the color spread. He added three sugar cubes in and mixed.

Ichimatsu was tugging Totty's sleeve. It was so unlikely behavior of his big brother that Totty had to turn to face him.

"The souvenirs", Ichi mumbled.

A lightbulb on Totty's head, "Ah! The souvenirs!"

Jyushi cheered, lifting his hands up in the air. He wanted to see Granny's reaction to the things they had gotten her. He had been the one to pick them out, so he was feeling slightly nervous. What if Granny didn't like them?

"Jyushi picked these out for you. I helped him a bit", Totty told Granny as he dug around his pink duffel bag for a colorful Disney-themed plastic bag.

Granny was fidgeting on her seat. She hadn't expected the brothers to buy her anything and had been feeling slightly guilty about it ever since the phone call with Ichimatsu. She didn't want the brothers to spend money on her at all.

"Here!" Totty finally found the bag he had been searching for and gave it to Granny, "We'll look at the pictures I took for you tomorrow."

Granny carefully peeled the plastic bag off the item, "Thank you so much! They're wonderful!"

Jyushimatsu was radiating with happiness. He was like a second sun. If people could one day figure out a way to harness the energy of Jyushimatsu's emotions, the world's energy problems would all be solved. That single smile was enough to warm up the whole room in one instant.

The souvenirs the six had gotten Granny were a set of Disney-themed cookie cutters and a Mickey-shaped cake pan.

"There's a cat in there, too", Ichi mumbled with a smile. He was referring to the cookie cutters.

"And a dog! A dog!" Jyushimatsu cheered waving his hands, mouth full of cake.

"Thank you so much!" Granny smiled, "I guess I need to make you six a cake for tomorrow. We can eat Disney cake and watch the pictures Totty took."

"Sounds like a plan", Karamatsu nodded.

"Agreed", Osomatsu gave the thumbs up, for the cake.

"Should we get going then?" Choromatsu asked. He was petting Ginger, who had found out that he liked cats and was gentle, too.

"Hmm, it's getting late", Totty agreed with a loud sneeze.

Jyushimatsu offered his little brother his hoodie's sleeve once again but was rejected.

"Granny needs some sleep before tomorrow, too", Ichi mumbled, while standing up to make his leave.

"You'll come to work tomorrow?" Granny asked the six, "If that's so, I have something I need to show you!"

"Eh?" Osomatsu cocked his head in question.

"Follow me", Granny smiled, getting up and moving to the shop part of her apartment.

The six brothers followed, albeit carefully. They had no idea what Granny had come up with this time.

"Ta-dah!" Granny revealed the bulletin board, "I and my friend came up with this. Sadly he isn't here to see your reactions. He had to return home."

Choromatsu stared at the board. It was a simple corkboard with the Matsuno family's symbol on top. It was filled with small handwritten notes.

Karamatsu took one off and skimmed through its contents, "'I need someone to taste my cakes! I think they taste awful and my husband has no taste when it comes to sweets!' What's this? Work?"

Osomatsu's eyes were sparkling, "Sounds like a dream job!"

"That's the Part-Time Bulletin Board for the Matsuno Brothers!" Granny huffed proudly, "Osomatsu, Karamatsu and why not the rest of you can pick out a note and do the job it describes. There's everything from cake tasting to mowing the lawn. The people are all my regular customers."

Choromatsu was nodding, "That sounds perfect! Karamatsu can finally quit doing his night shifts and spend some time with the rest of us."

"Yay! Karamatsu can play with us!" Jyushimatsu danced around his bog brother in glee.

"Thank you, Karamatsu girl!" Karamatsu was almost crying as he hugged Granny.

Osomatsu joined his little brother, "Thank you! I'm going to work hard! I'm going to taste all of the cakes! I'm going to eat them all!"

"You're going to just taste them!" Granny laughed between the two oldest Matsunos, "You're welcome, Karamatsu. Jyushi's been telling me how you've been sleeping all day and working all night. I wanted to give you some time to spend with your brothers. Use it wisely."

"Thank you so much! I'll work hard", Karamatsu was crying now, huge tears falling from his eyes.

Choromatsu sighed loudly, "Now I think we should really go home. Before I need to get a crowbar to pry my two idiot big brothers off of you."

Granny laughed, "I guess so! Good night, you six. See you tomorrow."

Choromatsu dragged his big brothers out of the house. The three little brothers fetched their luggage which was left in Granny's hallway.

"See you tomorrow!" the six told Granny.

"I'll bring all my memory cards", Totty told her weakly, wiping his runny nose.

"Are you really, really sure you don't want me to carry you?" Jyushi asked his little brother, sounding concerned.

"Again, no. I'll take some medicine and go straight to bed when we get home. I'll hopefully be feeling better tomorrow", Totty told Jyushi, "Thanks for the offer though."

"Hm, I could carry you", Karamatsu offered, "How does that sound?"

"Choromatsu, do we have any of those strong pain killers left? What about the cold medicine?" Totty totally ignored the second brother.

"Hmm… I bet we have both of them somewhere. I'll look for them when we get back. I must've packed some in my bag, too", Choromatsu told him.

The walk back home wasn't a long one and the brothers were there in no time.

Totty was about ready to hit the hay right where he was standing. Not that the five others weren't tired after the long day.

After opening the door, Choromatsu went straight to the medicine cabinet to look for the medicine. Looking for the ones in his bag would take too much time.

Osomatsu, Jyushimatsu and Todomatsu went upstairs and straight to bed that Karamatsu put out for them.

The second brother returned downstairs and joined Ichimatsu and Choromatsu, who were sitting around the living room table. They were slowly unpacking their bags onto the floor.

ESP Kitty was happily sleeping on his owner's lap, purring loudly. Ichimatsu had fed him as soon as the six were back home. Belly full, on a warm and cozy lap, sleeping sounded really good.

Karamatsu went to a cupboard which was full of games and took out a box.

"How about a game of Jenga?" he asked his little brother.

"Sure", Choromatsu said, "But just a couple, we need to go to sleep soon."

"Agreed", Ichi smirked. He was terrible at Jenga but was sure to make the game as terrible as possible for the others.

Ichimatsu was the first, since he was the youngest. He pulled out the middle piece from the very bottom of the tower.

"Seriously?" Choromatsu sighed as he took out a very safe brick.

"Hm, check this out", Karamatsu smiled as he pulled out a very difficult brick, almost bringing down the tower in the first turn.

The tower shook but didn't fall.

The three brothers sighed in relief.

The three Matsunos played three rounds, two of which Ichimatsu won. Choromatsu won the one.

Ichimatsu won by managing a move so risky that it meant the next player was sure to fail their move.

Choromatsu won by pure luck.

Karamatsu failed mostly because of his 'awesome' moves which usually ended in a disaster.

"Alright", Choromatsu yawned, "Should we go to bed?"

Ichi nodded, yawning himself.

Karamatsu gave the thumbs up.

The three moved upstairs to join the rest of the brothers.

"What about the luggage?" Choromatsu asked as he slid under the sheets.

"That can wait. We'll unpack them someday", Karamatsu reassured him, pushing Osomatsu off of his section of the futon. Seriously, how did he even get there?

Choromatsu checked if Todomatsu was sleeping alright. He seemed to be running a slight fever and his runny nose seemed to annoy him a bit.

Choromatsu hoped the medicine would work and Totty would be feeling better the following day.

"Good night", Choromatsu yawned.

"Good night", the two brothers still awake said.

The vacation was awesome but now it was time to rest and get ready to work.


	27. Chapter 27: Taste-Testing

Osomatsu was the first to wake up, much to everyone's surprise.

He stretched his body and yawned loudly, waking the rest up with it.

"Good morning!" Osomatsu cheered, turned his side and fell back to sleep.

"Hey!" Choromatsu screamed, having been woken up by the oldest and the weird noises he made during his inhumane stretches, "You already woke up! Don't go back to sleep!"

Karamatsu muttered something from under his pillow.

"What was that, Shittymatsu?" Ichimatsu was mad after being woken up so suddenly and was thirsty for blood.

"Don't you have work today, Osomatsu? You sounded so excited about it yesterday", Karamatsu said, having dumped his pillow.

"Ah!" Osomatsu was revived in an instant, "I need to go taste the cakes!"

"You need to go to work", Choromatsu tried to correct the oldest, "Nevermind. What do you guys want for breakfast? It's my turn to make some."

"Omelette with fried rice!" Jyushimatsu cheered from within the blankets he had buried himself in.

"Alright, one omurice coming up Mr. Jyushibug", Choromatsu laughed, "Anything else?"

The fifth brother seemed to like the new nickname, seeing he rolled around successfully collecting the rest of the brothers' blanket.

"Is that your cocoon, Jyushibug?" Ichimatsu crouched next to the huge roll of blanket and poked it gently, "Are you going to hatch soon? You're going to miss breakfast otherwise."

Jyushi's face was the only thing visible and on it was a huge smile radiating warmth to the whole room.

"Hm!" he agreed, "I'm going to hatch and become a beautiful butterfly!"

Choromatsu smiled to himself as he turned to make his way downstairs. Seriously adorable, his little brothers that is.

"Alright", Ichi nodded, "Could this butterfly wake up his little brother, too? He seems to still be sleeping."

The blanket worm moved. Jyushi was clearly getting ready for something.

Then, he suddenly jumped out of his cocoon of blankets, landing right next to his sleeping little brother.

"Totty!" he cheered, "I became a butterfly!"

With Ichi's cat-like reflexes, it was a surprise that he hadn't jumped to the ceiling. Maybe it was because he had been expecting the jump all along.

"Hmm? A butterfly?" Totty mumbled, turning to face his brother with squinting eyes, "Where are your wings then?"

His voice sounded stuffed. It was the nose that was causing it. It must still be full of icky snot.

"T-They're folded up for now!" Jyushi tried to explain. There had been a fatal flaw in his plan, "I shouldn't fly indoors, you see! Choromatsu will get mad."

"Ah, I see", Totty laughed at his brother's expression. Jyushi's thinking face was as adorable as ever.

"How's your nose?" Ichi asked quietly.

Todomatsu sneezed into a paper towel Jyushi had given him, "Terrible. Otherwise, I'm feeling a lot better. The pain killers must've worked."

"Should I go and find you a spray or something?"

"Nah, I'll try and sneeze this one out for now. Ask me again in the evening."

"Alright. Choromatsu's making omurice. The others are already downstairs", Ichimatsu informed.

"Does Totty want omurice? Or should we make you soup?" Jyushimatsu asked, feeling his brother's forehead.

"No soup thank you", Totty told them.

The three made their way downstairs hoping there was still some left for them.

Choromatsu was a good cook, after all.

"Morning, Totty. How's the head doing?" Choromatsu asked as he placed plates in front of the three.

"Good. The nose is the problem now", Totty told him, smiling at the ketchup design on the food.

There was a cat for Ichimatsu and a ladybug for Jyushimatsu. Totty got a sun to wish him good morning.

"Ladybug!" Jyushi cheered, rising his spoon to attack the poor thing.

"Kitty!" he then pointed at Ichi's plate.

The three ate in silence, savoring the taste of their breakfast.

"So good!" they all breathed.

Choromatsu was blushing from behind his morning paper.

"Good job, brother", Karamatsu agreed, having already finished his meal, "I can clean the dishes for you today."

"Thank you", Choromatsu smiled, "So, have you decided what you're going to do today?"

"I'm going to rest until we go see Granny to show her the pictures", Totty said, skimming through his social media.

Choromatsu nodded. That was the right answer. He wasn't going to let the youngest go to work until he was feeling better.

"I'm going to see two grandmas and eat their cakes!" Osomatsu cheered from somewhere on the floor.

"You mean 'taste them'", Choromatsu sighed.

"I'll go and mow a couple of lawns and help with cleaning", Karamatsu told with a proud smile.

A nod. Good.

"The shelter", Ichimatsu mumbled, "New kittens."

'Okay', Choromatsu nodded. His little brother knew there were other animals, too, right?

"Granny!" Jyushi cheered.

"Jyushimatsu, aren't you forgetting something?" Choromatsu asked, happy with his brothers' plans.

"Huh?"

"We're going to see your doctor today. He wants to see how you're doing", Choromatsu explained, "I'm sure he'd love to hear about your little vacation, too."

Ichimatsu was fidgeting. He was needed. His little brother needed him but the little kittens needed him, too. He couldn't accompany Jyushi to the hospital and take care of the kittens at the same time.

"I'll come with you today", Choromatsu told, "I have some things to discuss with your doctor after all."

"Alright!" Jyushi nodded in agreement. He hadn't had the time to spend with his big brother Choromatsu in a long time, so he was happy that he was going to come with him.

Ichimatsu was somewhat calmed down by the fact that Jyushi wouldn't be going to the hospital alone but would've still liked to come along. He'd swallow his pride and let Jyushi and Choromatsu go by themselves this time.

"Alright!" Choromatsu clapped his hand together, "Scatter!"

The brothers did just that, leaving to do just what they had told Choromatsu they'd do today.

Choromatsu and Jyushimatsu left for the little brother's check-up leaving Totty to take care of himself for a while.

The youngest promised to call them if he needed anything or if something was to happen.

"Have you been writing the diary?" Choromatsu asked his little brother. He hadn't always been there to help with the kanji and wasn't sure if Jyushi had actually done anything by himself.

"Yep! Ichimatsu has been helping me with the writing", Jyushi told him, "I'm getting better at it though!"

"Alright, that's good to hear", Choromatsu smiled. Kanji had always been his brother's weakness. He could write hiragana and some katakana but when it came to kanji, he was like a little kid.

The two arrived to the hospital on time.

Choromatsu was strict when it came to being somewhere on time. He was almost never late from anywhere.

When waiting for their appointment, a male nurse approached them carefully.

"H-Hello", he said, squeezing his hands nervously, "Matsuno?"

"Hello", Choromatsu said, eyeing the man. Did he know him?

"I'm Jyushimatsu!" the fifth of course went and said without a doubt.

"I'm sorry but do we know you?" Choromatsu asked.

"Ah", the nurse blushed, "N-No, your brother knows me though, Karamatsu."

"You're the nurse who Karamatsu went on a date with?" Jyushi asked him, "And he bought those golden sequin pants."

Choromatsu shuddered, 'Ah, those.'

"Y-Yes! He helped me pick some new suits you see."

"Aaa", Jyushi nodded, "So, why aren't you wearing them?"

"Nurses can only wear the nurse clothes, Jyushimatsu", Choromatsu explained for him, "It's like when you play baseball. You have your baseball clothes on when you're on a field, not your normal clothes, right? Well, it's the same with nurses. They have their nurse clothes they wear while working."

The young male was thankful that the older brother made the explanation for him. He couldn't have explained it in a way the hyper young man would've understood.

"You play baseball?!" Jyushi got excited.

"N-No, I used to though. In middle school", the nurse sweat dropped.

"It was an example, Jyushimatsu", Choromatsu sighed. His little brother could really be simple if he wanted to.

Jyushi cocked his head, "Okay."

"I-I was thinking if you knew whether your brother has any time these days. I heard he quit doing his night shifts, so…", the nurse tried to tell them something but was getting nowhere.

"I think he has", Choromatsu told him, "He has started working with an old lady we know. Part-time jobs and such. Why not ask him yourself?"

"The thing is…I wanted to surprise him", the nurse explained, "I've achieved a lot of the goals I had with your brother's help and I wanted to thank him."

"Really? Our Karamatsu?" Choromatsu couldn't believe his ears. Well, maybe poor fashion sense and cheesy one-liners could really get you somewhere in life.

"I can ask him!" Jyushi offered.

"Thank you", the man smiled.

"What are you planning to do? We could help you", Choromatsu asked.

"Me and my boyfriend though that we should treat him to some fine food or something."

"Sounds nice!" Choromatsu agreed, "I could ask him to 'go get some medical files for Jyushimatsu' some day and you two could kidnap him from there."

The young nurse's face brightened, "That sounds wonderful! I-I'll give you my number so we can plan this thing through."

"Alright", Choromatsu smiled and took out his phone.

"Matsuno Jyushimatsu!" came a call from one of the rooms in the long hospital hallway.

"Yes!" Jyushi stood up with inhumane speed and ran into the room.

Choromatsu tried his best to keep up.

"Thank you!" the male nurse shouted as the two went.

"You're welcome! Have fun", Choromatsu waved.

"Jyushimatsu, it's good to see you again!" Jyushi's doctor smiled sitting on his office chair as the two had entered the room and sat down, "How have you been? I heard you went on a vacation."

Jyushi seemed as excited as his doctor, "Hello doc! I'm doing great!"

"That's good to hear! Can I check your blood pressure and few other things? You can tell me about your little vacation as I take them."

Choromatsu watched as the doctor used the vacation as a distraction from the medical things.

Jyushimatsu had always been nervous while in hospital but this time he hardly seemed to notice that he was in one. He was happily chatting about some ride they had been on in Disneyland and the many things they had eaten there.

Jyushi didn't even touch his cuticles during this visit or kick his feet.

"What about the diary? Have you been writing that?" the doctor asked after determining that Jyushi's vitals were normal and that his hand was doing great, apart from some sores and dry spots that had developed there. He told them he'd give them some medical cream for those.

"Choromatsu bought me stickers and some new pencils! Now the diary is all colorful!" Jyushi cheered showing his doctor the newest entries, "Here we are in the Pirates of the Caribbean ride! It was super cool! And here's Ichimatsu when he found out that there are Disney cats!"

The doctor listened the explanations patiently, smiling at the glitter falling onto his desk.

Yes, Choromatsu regretted letting Karamatsu give that to his little brother. It was hard to clean up. There had been glitter in his pants this morning from god knows where.

"Looks wonderful! I love the stickers and colors you've used. Just continue doing this like you have", the doctor complimented Jyushimatsu, clapping his hands together in excitement. He was honestly just a kid in a doctor's coat.

"Hm!" Jyushi nodded.

"And remember to do those stretches! But not too much, we don't want you here because you've managed to make things worse."

"Hm, hm!"

"Alright! That's it for today! But don't leave yet, we have something very important to talk to you about."

Jyushi looked puzzled, 'Important stuff?'

"Do you remember your old doctor? The one who took care of you when you woke up", Choromatsu began, moving closer to his little brother, ready to comfort him if necessary.

"He wasn't very nice", Jyushi agreed. He clearly remembered.

"Yes, he's a bad man. He's going to be prosecuted. But they need evidence of what he did", the doctor explained, "We need you to be our witness. You know better than anyone what he did to your body."

Jyushi was shaking now. He clearly didn't want to remember.

"Do I need to tell everyone?" he asked quietly.

"Yes but there aren't many people there", the doctor tried to reassure him.

"What if I don't want to?"

"Then he might get away with the things he did to you. Don't you want him to get punished?" Choromatsu asked.

"He might do the same to others if we don't stop him now", the doctor said.

"I-I'll try", Jyushimatsu mumbled, clearly not sure if he could really do it.

"Good. The trial will be held in a couple of weeks. You'll have plenty of time to get ready and decide", the doctor said as he dug through his desk drawers.

"Here", he gave Choromatsu the printed version of the information he had about the case, "Read through that before the trial."

"Thank you", Choromatsu bowed and the two made their leave.

Jyushimatsu seemed quite gloomy when they exited the hospital.

Choromatsu felt bad for bringing up unwanted memories.

"H-Hey, how about a milkshake? I know a great place around here", Choromatsu tried.

Jyushimatsu mumbled something under his breath kicking some random empty can around.

"Hm? What was that?"

"Is there banana milkshake in there?" Jyushi asked again, this time a bit louder.

"Yes, I think there is", Choromatsu said, "Should I treat you to some?"

Jyushimatsu nodded with a smile.

The two arrived to Granny's in time for the show.

Totty had texted them telling he was on his way to Granny's and would bring the pictures and the equipment with him.

Choromatsu had offered to carry them with him but Todomatsu had told him he'd be fine.

Jyushimatsu was sipping his second milkshake, from Choromatsu. Choromatsu had given it to his little brother since he had been eyeing it ever since finishing his own.

"Eeeeeh?! What is that Jyushi? Where did you get a milkshake from?" it was Osomatsu, roaring how it wasn't fair that only Jyushi got one and he didn't.

"Aw shut it. You've been eating cakes and other sweets the whole day!" Totty smacked his big brother on the head, "How was it Jyushi, the check-up?"

"Good! I got to show the doctor my diary entries. He liked the colors!" Jyushimatsu smiled.

Choromatsu was worried how his little brother was able to tell lies with such a straight face. Of course he had shown the diary and everything but he hadn't had fun. Choromatsu saw how stressed out his brother had been when they were talking about the trial. He had looked just about ready to cry.

"That's great!" Karamatsu agreed, "Did he like the glitter, too?"

"I don't like it!" Totty screamed, "It was from you?! It gets everywhere!"

"Hm! It's all for the fashion", Karamatsu huffed proudly.

"It's painful!" Totty and Choromatsu, both fed up with finding glitter everywhere, screamed in unison.

"Come on boys", Granny laughed, "How about we watch those pictures now? I baked you the cake I promised."

"Yay! Cake!" the boys cheered, the fight instantly forgotten.

Totty managed to control the bundle of cords he had brought with him and attach his phone and camera into Granny's TV.

"Now we have a huge screen", he winked as he put on the slideshow, "Almost like in the movies."

The brothers all commented on the pictures and Granny wrote down the ones she wanted to be printed out.

"And there's Choromatsu and Karamatsu when they realized Osomatsu and Ichimatsu had found us and that we were safe", Totty laughed pointing at the two approaching figures in the corner one of the pictures.

Granny laughed, mostly to the two brothers' current embarrassment.

"And there's Jyushi posing with Pluto! Don't they look alike?"

"Wah!" Jyushi barked wagging the single cowlick on his head as if it was a tail.

"There's Ichi eating ice cream!" Jyushi pointed out, "It was vanilla flavored!"

"Looks like a cat", Granny snickered, petting Batter who was sitting in his lap watching the slideshow with interest.

Ginger and Stubby were both sitting in Ichimatsu's lap purring away in delight. Ichi could scratch from just the right spots.

After the slideshow was over, Granny handed Totty a long list and the seven turned their attention to the cake.

The cats did, too, but of course couldn't possibly eat it.

"No. This isn't for you", Granny told the cats, "Your tummies will get upset if you eat chocolate."

Ichi sneaked the cats some of the treats he had in his pockets while the seven enjoyed the cake and some tea.

"We'll get going now", Choromatsu said as the six were putting their shoes on in the hallway, "Thank you for having us today."

"You're welcome!" Granny laughed giving Jyushi a parting hug, "You three are coming to work tomorrow, right?"

"Of course!" Osomatsu, Karamatsu and Jyushimatsu cheered. They wouldn't miss it for the world.

"Good!" Granny smiled, waving at the six as they left, "Take care! Get better, Totty!"

"I'll try my best!" Todomatsu waved a bag of herbal tea he had gotten from Granny with a smile. He really liked fancy tea.

As the six were getting ready for bed, the two oldest brothers were sparkling with happiness.

"So, how was your work?" Choromatsu asked them, almost wanting to get some sunglasses to wear.

"It was amazing!" Osomatsu screamed, "I mean the ladies were super nice and the cakes were all good, too. Why the hell would they even think their cakes wouldn't be good enough for their friends to eat?! They all tasted heavenly!"

"Some have higher standards than you", Choromatsu mumbled.

"I'll be going to see this old lady tomorrow. She said she just wants to talk and have some company. I mean that's a perfect job for me! We can be lazy and just talk together!" Osomatsu continued, doing a happy dance around their apartment's small bathroom where the six were brushing their teeth.

"Hm! I moved a lawn today", Karamatsu told, "Then I helped an old man dust his house."

Choromatsu nodded. If he could just do the same in their house without being asked to do so.

"T-They all loved me!" Karamatsu was now on the floor, holding his chest as if in pain, "Karamatsu girls!"

"Alright, let's go to sleep", Choromatsu said leaving the drama king alone on the floor.

"Yeah", the rest agreed.


	28. Chapter 28: Jyushimatsu's Letter

Waking up in the morning and going downstairs for breakfast went like usual in the Matsuno household.

To be honest, it looked more like a zombie apocalypse than a normal morning routine. That was how it always looked like though. Six bodies rising from the dead, a.k.a. sleep, and crawling downstairs after food.

It was Karamatsu's turn to make food today and he went all out. It looked like a hotel's menu more than something the brothers were used to eating.

Well, the morning went almost as any other, until there was a loud sneeze.

"Bless you, Totty", Karamatsu said from the other side of the table, too busy polishing his sunglasses to look up.

"Umm… Todomatsu said his cold was back and he was going to stay in bed for the day", Choromatsu pointed out.

The five brothers looked at each other in silence for good three minutes.

Then there was another one. A bit louder this time.

It was the fifth brother, Jyushimatsu.

"The doctor said something about this", Choromatsu sighed, "Jyushimatsu's immune system is weak from the stay in the hospital and all of the medicine he's been taking these past few weeks. I thought I told you to be careful around your little brother."

Ichimatsu was wiping his little brother's nose with a napkin trying not to care about the little pout on his face, "What does that mean?"

"I was careful", Jyushi mumbled.

Ichimatsu was ignored. A plot twist.

"I bet you were", Osomatsu patted the fifth's back, "You slept next to each other during the vacation though."

"Let's just say we'll need to look after two sick little brothers now", Karamatsu tried to explain, mentally preparing himself to be a good big brother and take care of his two youngest brothers, "I'll go make some soup for Totty."

"You go make that soup", Choromatsu nodded, "And Jyushimatsu goes back to bed."

"Noooo!" Jyushimatsu pouted, flailing his hands, "I have work today!"

Choromatsu sighed, Jyushi was the worst to negotiate with, "Alright. How about one of us stays home with you two? Would that help at all?"

Jyushimatsu had pulled his hoodie's hood all the way over his head and pulled the strings, "Maybe."

'It was Jyushibug before. Now it must be Jyushibeetle. Such evolution", Osomatsu was eyeing his little brother from the floor where he was lying reading some comics.

"Brother, I'll take care of our dear Granny today", Karamatsu told his little brother, "I promise."

"And I can stay with you two today", Ichimatsu said, "To be honest, I think I'll be the next one to get the bug."

'Bug?' Jyushi perked up.

"Not you too", Choromatsu shook his head. He was also worried he'd come back to a murder scene or something. Ichimatsu-sama wasn't the best to take care of sick people.

"Come on! Chill! They'll be alright", Osomatsu laughed, "You go and get your work done so you can come back early."

"Alright. Let's do that", Choromatsu gave up, "I'll buy you some medicine on my way home."

"Behave yourselves!" the three oldest brothers reminded the three as they were leaving the house.

"There's medicine on the kitchen table for the two. Give them some according to the instructions if needed", Choromatsu rambled on and on about the medicine and other essentials.

"Alright, Mama Choromatsu will have to leave now or he'll be late from work", Osomatsu sing sang, taking his brother's hand and dragging him away, "But yes, do behave."

"I bet Granny will give me something good to bring back to you, brothers", Karamatsu said, "Don't worry, Jyushimatsu. I'll work hard!"

"If you're going to work, take those stupid pants off first!" it was Totty. He was hanging from the bedroom window, looking unwell, "They'll scare the customers away!"

Ichimatsu agreed with a nod, hoping that the apron he'd have to wear would cover most of them so that the customers' eyes would be spared.

"And Choromatsu", Totty added, "Bring me soda!"

"Eh?" Choromatsu turned to look at the youngest, "Soda?"

"Yes. Soda. What? You never feel like drinking soda when you're sick?"

"Alright. I'll bring you some", Choromatsu said. He knew the feeling.

"Yay! And while you're there, could you also bring me some-"

"Let's go!" Choromatsu cut the youngest off not wanting to get a meter-long list of all the things he should bring from the mall, "We'll be late."

"Didn't I tell you so?!" Osomatsu huffed, although he had a smirk dancing on his lips.

After the three had left, the younger brothers were left alone in the big house.

Totty had texted them to be quiet, whatever they did and that he wanted soup for lunch.

Ichimatsu would bring him some more medicine with a glass of water later. But for now, he was going to let his little brother catch some sleep.

"So", Ichimatsu began, "Bed?"

Jyushimatsu was still pouting although he had exited the self-made hoodie cocoon, "Don't wanna."

The previous sentence seemed fake as Jyushi sneezed loudly, followed by a cough.

Ichimatsu flinched. It sounded painful.

"Is your throat sore? Should I get you some tea?" Ichimatsu asked.

"No."

"Listen. It's no use pouting now. You're not going back to work before you're well again", Ichimatsu pointed out, "You don't have to go to bed if you don't want to but you're not going to work either."

"C-Could we maybe write a letter?" Jyushimatsu asked quietly after a long inner debate over the situation.

"A letter?" Ichimatsu had a hunch to who it was for, "Sure. Where do you want to write it? The living room table?"

Jyushi nodded, "Hm. You could help me with the kanji again."

"Alright. I'll go get us some paper and pens. Would you like something to drink, too?"

"Juice."

"Coming right up", Ichimatsu smiled, "Just sit down and I'll be right back."

Ichimatsu ended up stealing some of Osomatsu's snacks, too, while in the kitchen. The oldest would understand. It was for a greater cause after all.

"We had some old letter paper left", Ichimatsu dumped the contents of some old box onto the table.

Soon, the small living room table was filled with everything from paper and stickers to rubber bands and paper clips. In the middle, sat two glasses of juice and a bag of potato chips.

Jyushimatsu picked out a flower-themed paper and took out a pen.

First it looked like he had a clear plan in mind but it soon became evident that the fifth had no idea where to even begin his writing.

"Trouble staring?" Ichimatsu asked, looking through the stickers in hopes of finding some cat ones.

Jyushi nodded, "I though writing a letter was easy. Guess I was wrong."

Ichimatsu looked at the blank page, "How about telling her what you thought of her letter?"

Jyushi's face lit up and he began to furiously write something.

"Ah", he suddenly stopped.

"What is it?"

"I made a mistake."

Ichimatsu had feared this would happen, "I think I saw an identical paper somewhere in the pile. Let me get that."

Ichi handed the paper he found to his little brother but just as Jyushi was going to begin rewriting his letter on the new paper, Ichimatsu stopped him.

"No. Let's learn from our mistakes", Ichimatsu gave Jyushi a blank, white paper, "Here's a draft paper for you. Let's write the letter here first. Then we can write it to the official paper."

Jyushi nodded in understatement.

The pair then began the tough task of writing a letter to a girl.

After an hour of work and sweating, the two were finally done with the draft.

"Okay. How does it look? Like it?" Ichimatsu asked after making sure all of the characters were correct.

"Hm! Let's write it to the paper now!"

"Should I look for good stickers?"

"Yes!" Jyushi agreed, nose already glued to the paper in concentration.

Another hour went by until Jyushimatsu was done with writing the letter.

He must've really wanted his handwriting to look good and legible. He didn't usually have the patience to sit still even for five minutes.

Ichimatsu felt proud as he handed a stack of stickers and colored pencils to his little brother.

Jyushi looked through them carefully before selecting the ones he'd use and set to work.

"Ichimatsu?" he suddenly asked.

"Hm?" ESP Kitty had come to see what the duo was up to and settled on the fourth's lap. Ichi was petting him as he watched his little brother work.

"Can you write something, too?"

"Why? Isn't it your letter?"

"But you helped me write it! And you read the last one for me! You must at least say hello", Jyushi pouted.

"Alright, alright. Give it here", Ichimatsu mumbled with a blush, "Is this okay or were you going to put a sticker there?"

"It's good", Jyushi smiled watching his big brother draw a waving cat.

"Maneki neko!" Jyushi cheered, "So cute! You're so talented."

"S-Shut it", Ichimatsu blushed even more. He quickly wrote a small greeting and gave the letter back, "Here."

"It's perfect!" Jyushimatsu stood up, spinning around with the letter in his hands.

"Here. Don't forget the envelope", Ichi gave Jyushi a couple to choose from.

The two sat down to choose.

It was hard choosing the perfect envelope. It would be the first thing the receiver would see when getting the letter. It had to be perfect or the contents would also be ruined by the terrible exterior.

"This one!" Jyushimatsu finally slammed his sleeve-covered hand on one of the envelopes.

There weren't any flower-themed available so Jyushi went with cute and tiny animals.

"Then, finally, the-", Ichimatsu began rummaging through the box but soon quit, realizing their grave error, "We don't have any stamps."

"Huh?" Jyushimatsu turned the box upside down, successfully littering the table once again when Ichimatsu had just cleaned it up, "No stamps."

"I'll text Choromatsu and tell him to get some", Ichimatsu took out his phone, "We should be able to mail the letter today if Choromatsu can find stamps for us."

"Hmm", Jyushi nodded, his eyes drooping, "I want to send it today. I haven't had the time to write it before so the letter is really late."

Ichimatsu had noticed his brother's decreasing energy ever since beginning the whole letter-writing thing. Jyushi would go straight to bed after he had sent the text.

Totty's bug had struck the fifth Matsuno brother hard, it seemed. His weak immune systems wasn't enough to protect its owner from the virus.

Ichimatsu bet the bug was going to be at least twice as bad as in Todomatsu's case, too.

"There, sent", Ihchimatsu hit the send button, hoping for a positive reply, "Now, off to bed with you."

Jyushimatsu was literally lying on top of the table now, "Don't wanna. Let's watch baseball from the TV."

"Come on you big baby. Upstrairs", Ichimatsu took his little brother's hand and began dragging him, "You're tired. You need to sleep. Plus, there isn't baseball on TV during this time of the day."

"Noooo", Jyushimatsu whined the whole way, "Then, let's play something! Jenga?"

"No. It's either you go to bed or I drag you there", Ichimatsu crossed his hands, trying to look tough.

Jyushimatsu's reply was to flop lifelessly down onto the floor.

"You asked for it", Ichimatsu sighed, getting ready for a week's worth of work.

Ichimatsu was panting by the time the two made it upstairs and into the bedroom. Who knew carrying your little brother could be so hard.

To be fair, Jyushimatsu had decided to help him with the stairs.

"Hello you two", Totty mumbled from where he had been sleeping prior to the two barging in loudly, "What's up?"

"We wrote a letter and now this little shit doesn't want to go to sleep", Ichimatsu tsk'ed, sounding a bit pissed off already, "He only wants me to play with him despite how his eyelids are already half closed."

"Jyushimatsu, won't you come sleep next to me?" Totty asked with his sweet voice usually meant to be used with the puppy eyes, "I've been lonely."

Jyushi's head was lolling to the side. He looked absolutely drained.

Ichi was going to make sure to go and fetch the thermometer next and measure the obvious fever his brother had.

"Hmm, sure", Jyushi mumbled and flopped down next to his little brother.

"Good boy", Todomatsu pet his head, "So, what did you write on that letter?"

"A secret!" Jyushimatsu sang from somewhere midway through dreamland.

Ichimatsu sat down and watched how the youngest Matsuno kept talking nonsense to his big brother about pretty much everything and anything that came to his mind.

Jyushimatsu finally seemed to fall asleep after ten minutes of rambling.

Both Matsunos awake let out a long sigh. Victory.

Jyushi had always been a terrible sleeper when sick. There were two options and two options only, he either slept through the whole thing or didn't want to sleep at all. There was usually no third option but Totty seemed to have found the happy medium between the usual two.

Ichimatsu knew that by not sleeping when sick Jyushimatsu tried to prevent being left alone. When all of the six were sick at the same time, Jyushi slept next to them like a baby. But when only one or two of them were to get sick, there was no guarantee that someone was going to be by his side when he woke up.

Being left alone hurt Jyushimatsu more than anything else.

"I had to distract him", Totty explained as he rolled to face Ichimatsu, "He would've never fallen asleep otherwise. Think of it as a bedtime story of some sort."

"Thanks. He must've caught your bug", Ichimatsu said still sitting on the floor next to the brothers' mattress.

"Yeah. I should've noticed my symptoms earlier. I could've warned you all."

"No use whining now", Ichimatsu said, stretching his sore back, "So, soup?"

"Thank you. Make yourself some, too", Totty thanked his big brother, "And bring Jyushimatsu an icepack. His fever seems to be skyrocketing."

"Should I call the others? Choromatsu said that the doctor mentioned this before."

"I can send him a text. Just go get that soup."

"Whatever you say."

Choromatsu had finished his work earlier than usual, just for his little brothers.

He went to the local super market and pharmacy to get things for the sick brothers back home.

He remembered the stamps when he was at the checkout, paying for the soup, tea, soda and cough drops he had picked out. He asked the nice cashier for some and luckily they had what he needed. Choromatsu bought some extra since they apparently had absolutely no stamps at their place.

Chormatsu happened to run to Osomatsu and Karamatsu when he exited the pharmacy with the medicine Jyushi's doctor had suggested he should buy.

The third brother had phoned the doctor later that day, after learning that Jyushimatsu was also down and with a high fever, too. He had asked if there was something that he needed to do and if Jyushi's previous hospital stay affected the treatment methods in any way.

The doctor had told him to first of all calm down. He had also advised Choromatsu that he should follow how things developed and call if anything got worse, especially the fever.

Choromatsu was somewhat taken aback by the doctors calm determination but also slightly calmed down by it. The brothers would manage. It wasn't the first time their little brothers were sick, after all.

"Choromatsu! What were you buying?" Osomatsu asked, swinging his arm over his little brother's shoulders, "Is there anything for me?"

"From the pharmacy? No", Choromatsu said, "Jyushimatsu's situation has gotten worse. He's luckily asleep now."

"Poor little sunshine", Karamatsu mumbled, "Granny gave me some fresh bread to eat but I guess if Jyushimatsu doesn't have an appetite…"

"I offer myself as sacrifice!" Osomatsu jumped, "I'll eat the bread."

"I bet he could have some with the soup if he feels like eating something tonight", Choromatsu pointed out.

"True", Karamatsu agreed.

The three arrived into a silent house.

"Hello? Anybody home?" Osomatsu peeked into the living room, "Not here."

"Maybe they're upstairs?" Karamatsu suggested.

As the three walked past the kitchen to get to the stairs, Choromatsu happened to look into the room. It was a complete mess. There were unwashed dishes everywhere, accompanied by empty soup cans.

'I'll have a word with Ichimatsu about this later', the third mumbled to himself.

Osomatsu opened the bedroom door with a slam and looked in.

There were three lumps on the bed.

Totty and Jyushimatsu sleeping away with icepacks on their heads.

Ichimatsu was sleeping by their feet like a cat, curled in a ball.

There was a quiet sniffling noise coming from the two sick people and Ichimatsu snored.

The big brother, not having the heart to wake up their sleeping little brothers, switched to sign language. Or, well, a Matsuno brothers' non-verbal way of communication, to be more accurate.

In the end the three decided to throw a blanket over the fourth brother and leave the room quietly.

'Let the sleeping ones sleep', they thought.

Waking them up would only lead to disaster.

Totty would be whining and Jyushimatsu would never fall asleep again.

Ichimatsu would be super pissed since he had managed to get the two to calm down and sleep. He had also been taking care of them the whole day and was sure to be tired himself.

The big brothers would warm up some soup before barging in with the medicine and waking the brothers up.

So the three were safe, for now.

Todomatsu actually ended up waking up all by himself.

He slowly made his way downstairs after the delicious smell of food and in hopes of getting some medicine for his headache.

"Evening", Totty mumbled as he entered the kitchen, "Choromatsu, did you bring the pills I asked for?"

"Yes, they're over there", Choromatsu pointed to a counter to his left and continued stirring the soup, "Would you like something to eat? The soup is almost done and Karamatsu brought some bread with him, from Granny."

Todomatsu twisted the bottle's cap open with lighting speed and popped two into his mouth before speaking, "Sure. Should I go wake the others up?"

"Do that, but careful", Choromatsu said, taking some bowls out for the six.

"Sure", Totty winked, "I'm going to wake up the sleeping tiger, after all."

And yes, after ten minutes of careful coaxing, Totty had managed to get the two missing brothers downstairs and to sit down by the table.

Jyushimatsu seemed really out of it. His face was flushed red and his bloodshot eyes rivaled the color of his red cheeks. The cough was also back with more power than ever.

Ichimatsu looked no better. He was still tired after taking care of his little brothers all day.

"Evening, brothers", Karamatsu greeted them handing them their bowls of hot soup, "Here. Would you like some bread?"

"Hm", Ichimatsu nodded taking the spoon and shoveling some of the soup into his mouth, "Good."

"Thanks", Choromatsu smiled although all he had done was reheating the soup, "It's fish soup. I first thought about making chicken noodle soup but this seemed even better."

Jyushimatsu had not made a single move to pick up the spoon. He hadn't answered his big brother's question either.

"Jyushimatsu? Do you want any bread?" Karamatsu asked again.

The fifth made a half shrug like move, staring at his bowl.

"No appetite, huh?" Choromatsu sighed, "At least take some meds. I'll go get them for you."

Choromatsu rose from the floor, "What would you like with them?"

After a minute of silence, Ichimatsu spoke up, "He had some juice before. Try that."

"Alright."

"You really ought to eat something, too, brother", Karamatsu leaned closer to his little brother, "How about crackers? Would you eat those?"

Jyushi shook his head slowly, swaying a little.

Karamatsu then took the spoon from the bowl, blew into it and offered it to Jyushimatsu, "Come on, just a few bites. For me."

Jyushimatsu opened his mouth lazily accepting the soup. He chewed slowly and swallowed.

"Good job! Another one?" Karamatsu continued to spoon-feed his little brother for good five minutes before Jyushimatsu was simply done and lied down on the floor.

"Jyushimatsu, your medicine", Choromatsu sighed, bringing Jyushi a glass of juice and an assortment of pills.

"He's asleep", Ichimatsu said after checking, "He'll take them later."

"How come he went so bad so fast? What were you two doing down here?" Totty asked sounding concerned.

"We wrote a letter", Ichimatsu mumbled.

"A letter?" that got Osomatsu's interest. The Matsunos wrote no letters.

"To the girl", Ichimatsu explained, "She wrote to him before."

There was a shared 'Aaa' among the brothers. That girl.

"And he got so excited that he forgot about his previous sneezing and coughing?" Choromatsu asked.

"Yes", Ichimatsu nodded, "He wouldn't stay still."

"That's so like him though", Osomatsu smiled, "Always so reckless."

Choromatsu and Karamatsu nodded in agreement.

"But you know, we can't let Jyushimatsu sleep on the floor the whole night", Todomatsu finally pointed out when the brothers were done with their dinner, "He'll freeze."

"True", Ichimatsu agreed, "What should we do?"

"We'll need to carry him if he doesn't want to wake up and walk", Choromatsu sighed, sitting next to the apparently sleeping fifth brother.

Choromatsu poked Jyushimatsu's cheek gently and when there was no reaction he poked a bit harder.

Jyushimatsu mumbled and cracked one eye open, "Hm? What?"

His fever-dazed mind couldn't comprehend the situation seeing his gaze wandered around the room from one brother to another. He probably didn't even know whether he was awake or not.

"Do you think you could take some medicine and climb upstairs?" Choromatsu asked his little brother.

Jyushi stood up slowly to sit down, leaning to his big brother the whole time.

"Medicine?" Choromatsu offered the glass of juice.

Jyushimatsu nodded and took the glass, letting Choromatsu put the pills into his mouth.

He didn't even ask what the pills were for, which concerned Ichimatsu who knew his little brother had been terrified of pills ever since the incident with his old doctor.

The process took about five minutes after which Jyushimatsu seemed even more tired than before.

"The medicine will help you. You'll feel better when you wake up tomorrow", Choromatsu assured, "Do you think you could make it upstairs?"

Jyushimatsu nodded and tried to stand up but his legs soon gave in under him and he toppled back down.

"Alright", Osomatsu sighed, "Brothers, get ready. We'll need to carry our brother upstairs."

Choromatsu nodded. Their baby brother needed them.

"Totty, you sit still and watch", Karamatsu told the youngest who was sick himself.

Totty was ready with his phone. This would be interesting.

Karamatsu and Ichimatsu took the legs, while Osomatsu and Choromatsu took the front.

The staircase wasn't meant for things like this. It was fairly cramped as it was but five brothers trying to squeeze themselves up the stairs at the same time was just impossible.

Somehow the five managed to carry their little brother up the stairs and into their bedroom. Although it took more than ten minutes, a lot of bruises and cursing to accomplish.

They were all panting hard by the time they had tucked Jyushi into bed.

Totty had brought an icepack and placed it on his big brother's head. He wished it would at least bring some comfort to the raging fever.

"Poor thing", Totty mumbled sneezing loudly, "I hope the medicine will work."

Choromatsu agreed, "We'll need to monitor the fever closely. The ones still healthy will need to wash their hands and take vitamins. The last thing we need now is us all getting sick. "

"Agreed", Karamatsu nodded.

"We need to make sure Jyushimatsu doesn't hurt his hand", Ichimatsu mumbled, "The current cast is a soft one, right? He might move in his sleep and hurt himself more."

"Of course", Choromatsu said. He had completely forgotten, "Could you do it Karamatsu? You're good at stuff like this."

"Of course, brother", Karamatsu gave the thumbs up and set to work.

They didn't have any fancy hospital stuff so rolls of bandages and some sticks or small blanks for support would have to do for now.

Jyushimatsu's immobilized left hand looked monstrous by the time the second brother was finished with it. There was more bandage and supports than hand on the left limb.

"Well, at least it won't move", Choromatsu sighed eyeing the package.

"Agreed", Osomatsu nodded, "Let's hope it isn't too warm and itchy though."

"I bet that's the least of our worries now."

Karamatsu agreed, getting his guitar out to play some sweet tunes. A lullaby for his sick brothers to help them sleep.

"Alright, I'm going to bed, too. Let's hope my bug is gone tomorrow", Totty yawned, "Good night!"

The youngest had been watching the big brothers take care of Jyushimatsu this whole time. In a way he was jealous that the fifth got more attention than him, but he quickly forgot those feelings as he watched Jyushi's sleeping face and listened to him cough his lungs out.

Totty would make sure to spoil him tomorrow if Jyushi was still feeling sick.

"Good night!" the rest said.

The four brothers watched their two youngest sleep for a while after which they got to sleep, too.

They wished that a new day would bring improvement on both of the brothers' condition.


	29. Chapter 29: Feeling Sick

"Choromat-!" Osomatsu woke up with a scream.

He was sweating and panting a lot as he tossed the covers off of him in a fit of frustration.

'Damn nightmares', Osomatsu huffed deciding it'd be the best if he went to clean himself up before trying to go back to sleep. He was drenched in sweat and his damp pajamas clung to his body unpleasantly.

He quietly stood up, careful not to wake up Choromatsu or Totty, who were sleeping on his either side.

The room was dark, safe for the eerie light of the full moon illuminating from the window and onto the sleeping brothers. It was almost like a spotlight on a stage.

Osomatsu yawned and stretched his sore back, observing his sleeping brothers' faces.

When he got to Jyushimatsu though, he was met with a stare.

His sick little brother wasn't asleep but staring at him.

Osomatsu checked the youngest, too, but he was sleeping his sickness away like a good boy should. Good.

"Jyushi!" Osomatsu whispered as he crawled to his little brother, "Why are you up this late? Shouldn't you be sleeping?!"

"Had a nightmare", came the silent reply followed by a small cough.

"Ah", Osomatsu sighed, "You too?"

Jyushimatsu tilted his head to the side, not understanding his big brother's question.

What did he mean 'You too'? Had he had a nightmare, too, then?

Osomatsu lifted his little brother up from the armpits to a sitting position, "Come on. Let's get ourselves cleaned up, okay?"

Jyushimatsu nodded and slowly followed his big brother to the bathroom.

"Sit there", Osomatsu pointed to the closed toilet lid, "I'll go get us some fresh pajamas and towels."

Jyushi only nodded weakly, not really having the strength to do much else.

The medicine was doing its thing. Jyushi's fever had gone down a lot during the night but it had also made him really weak. To be honest he didn't know if it was the medicine or the bug making him weak this time. The only thing he knew was that he was sweaty and icky and wanted just to curl up next to his brothers, close his eyes and fall back to sleep.

"Found them!" Osomatsu whispered triumphantly, carrying a fresh set of pajamas for them both and their towels as he re-entered the room.

He then shamelessly began stripping his old sweaty clothes off and soaked a towel in cold water.

"Ah! Right!" Osomatsu then remembered, "Should I help you with yours?"

Jyushimatsu's face was red but the big brother didn't know if it was embarrassment or the fever.

The oldest began unbuttoning his little brother's shirt after giving him a wet towel to clean his face with.

"Don't worry. I'll be gentle", Osomatsu laughed, trying to lighten up the mood.

He, too, honestly needed some cuddles after this. The traces of the nightmare still lingered in the air making it heavy.

After successfully stripping his little brother, Osomatsu set to work trying to wipe off the sweat.

'If one of the brothers was to barge in now', Osomatsu thought with a smirk remembering the incident with Ichimatsu and Karamatsu. Man, he had been confused.

Jyushimatsu was mostly cooperative, sitting still on the lid while his big brother cleaned and dried him up.

"There! All done!" Osomatsu smiled as he went to take the clean pajamas, "Let's get you dressed before you get cold."

The pants went in first without much of a struggle.

"Alright, now go 'banzai'", Osomatsu instructed lifting his hands up as an example.

Jyushi lifted his hands up. One hand up to be honest, after noticing that the other one was immobilized.

Osomatsu caught his little brother staring at the weird structure on his left arm curiously.

"Karamatsu made that", Osomatsu explained, "We were afraid that you were going to roll around in your sleep and hurt your hand."

Jyushimatsu's face lit up and he nodded in understatement.

Yes, that was probably the best thing to do.

Jyushi did want to get to hit those homeruns as soon as possible, after all.

As Jyushimatsu had been lost in thought, Osomatsu had wiped himself clean and gotten dressed up.

"Alright, and we're done", Osomatsu clapped his hands together, "Back to sleep?"

Jyushimatsu kicked his feet up and down nervously and looked around.

"No?" Osomatsu asked.

A shake. No.

"Let's go get some warm milk!" Osomatsu said taking his little brother's hand, "Think you can walk downstairs?"

Jyushimatsu wasn't really sure. His feet felt like Jello and they were shaking.

He decided to shake his head once again. No, he wasn't going to make it.

"Alright", Osomatsu nodded. The two had arrived to the top of the stairs, "How about I go get us the milk and you wait here on the top?"

That sounded like a plan to Jyushi and he nodded with a smile. Drinking warm milk on top of the staircase in the middle of the night seemed like and adventure.

"Wait there. I'll be right back", Osomatsu winked as he begun carefully descending the dark stairway.

The two hadn't had the courage to actually put the lights on, fearing they'd wake the other four up so they had a small flashlight and the moon as their only sources of light. Other than that, the hallway was pitch black.

Osomatsu was soon back with two mugs of warm milk. Not too hot not too cold but just perfect.

"Here", Osomatsu gave Jyushi one of the mugs, "One for me and one for you."

Jyushimatsu took a deep breath, smelling the milk.

It was followed by a coughing fit of course.

Osomatsu patted his little brother's back trying to comfort him and help with the progress.

"There, there", he whispered, "Take it easy."

"V-Vanilla", Jyushi finally managed to say. His voice was raspy as hell and came out as nothing more than a whisper.

Osomatsu nodded, "Yeah, I came across a pack when I was rummaging through the cabinets the other day and decided that vanilla sugar would do great with warm milk. Doesn't it though? Or is it just me?"

Jyushimatsu nodded with a smile, "It's good."

"Glad you like it! It's the great big brother Osomatsu's secret recipe!" Osomatsu huffed.

'You just told me what it was' Jyushimatsu laughed but soon went into another fit of coughs.

Osomatsu once again stayed by his brother's side, patting his back while the fit went by, "That sounds terrible. Should I look for some medicine?"

Jyushimatsu cringed at that.

The face he made didn't go unnoticed by the big brother, "Tastes bad doesn't it? I know but you're never going to be able to sleep like this. I can mix it with some juice if that helps. Choromatsu even showed me where the meds are so I'll get the right one for sure."

Jyushi nodded, "Thank you."

He knew his big brother was only thinking of his best even though he knew the medicine tasted awful. It was more like something to clean up pipes with than medicine for cough.

"I'll get you some. Mixed with the sweetest juice of course", Osomatsu said as he took the empty mugs with him and went downstairs once more.

And Jyushimatsu was left alone to sit on top of the stairs once again. He kicked his slipper-covered feet making swishing sound as the feet hit the wooden stairs.

The sound of his big brother's bare feet approached Jyushimatsu from the dark after a couple of minutes.

The small light of the flashlight came to view soon after.

"Here we go! Took ages to find the right one", Osomatsu whispered as he handed Jyuhsi a glass.

It almost looked like regular apple juice except there were some dark swirls of cough medicine in the otherwise perfect golden liquid.

Jyushimatsu got second thoughts about the whole thing.

The contents of the glass didn't look sweet at all.

He gulped loudly before lifting the glass to his lips and pouring the whole thing down his throat in one go.

"It can't taste that bad", Osomatsu whistled as he watched his brother go, "Although I can't remember the last time I had some."

Jyushimatsu let out a long breath after he was finished. Never again. Disgusting.

"Alright. Now should we return to bed?" Osomatsu asked, "Or do you want more milk?"

"Bed", Jyushi agreed, lifting his hands so that Osomatsu could help him stand up and walk back to the brothers' room.

"Let's go", Osomatsu supported his little brother as they slowly walked all the way back into their room. After that Osomatsu even helped Jyushi slide under the blankets.

Osomatsu had calmed down considerably and was fairly certain he was going to be able to fall back to sleep this time. He watched his little brother for a while and after he was sure the little sunshine was safely back in the land of dreams, he put his head onto his pillow and fell asleep.

There were no more nightmares that night and the third brother, Choromatsu woke up to an older brother clinging to him like a monkey.

"I'm not your plush toy!" Choromatsu screamed, successfully waking up the whole group minus Osomatsu, "Let go!"

Osomatsu just mumbled something and pulled the third brother closer to him snuggling to his side.

There was drool on Choromatsu's pajama shirt. He had just washed it, too!

Choromatsu let out a frustrated sigh and gave up. Maybe they could snooze for a while like this. He'd probably need to stay home to take care of his younger brothers anyways. Some more sleep wouldn't hurt, would it? He'd just close his eyes for a minute.

The six lied in their bed lazily for another hour, not really wanting to get up and begin their day.

The warm morning sun shone in from the window creating a nice and warm feeling.

The brothers almost looked like cats enjoying spring's first warm rays of sun by rolling around wildly on any sunny spot they could find.

The birds were chirping cheerfully and the morning's light rain sang its sweet melodies as the droplets hit the roof of the Matsunos' house.

One could almost forget that two of the brothers were sick.

Almost, until Totty sneezed loudly, followed by Jyushimatsu lapsing into yet another coughing fit.

'Alright. Time to get up', Choromatsu huffed, trying to wrestle the oldest brother off of his midsection.

"Osomatsu! Let me go!" Choromatsu screamed, "We have two sick people in need of medicine."

Osomatsu mumbled something and slowly let go, pouting slightly.

Choromatsu gave him his pillow as a substitute.

The death grip was soon back and Osomatsu sleeping soundly once again.

"Morning", Choromatsu made his way to Totty's side after being freed, "How are you feeling today?"

"Like crap", Totty sneezed, "My throat is burning and I can't breathe through my nose."

Choromatsu nodded, "I'll stay home today to look after you two. I'll call my boss after breakfast."

Ichimatsu had dug himself under the blankets for warmth earlier that night. Now he stuck out a single hand and crabbed Choromatsu's leg.

Choromatsu screamed in surprise. He hadn't been expecting the sudden assault at all.

"Y-Yes Ichimatsu?" he asked his little brother who still clung to his leg, "Are you sick too?"

A thumbs up from the hand a small shift of the blankets was the reply he got.

"That's what you get", Choromatsu joked, mentally preparing himself to take care of three brothers for the whole day.

All three were different types of sick people which Choromatsu was, in a way, thankful for.

Todomatsu was whiny when sick taking full advantage of his brothers' kindness. He'd ask for this and that and make the stupidest of requests. The soda Choromatsu got him yesterday was one of them.

Ichimatsu was an introvert when sick. Not that he wasn't one when healthy though. He also made more hurtful comments and was generally more pissed off when sick. He honestly just wanted to be close to people and know they loved him but he didn't have the words to tell them that.

Jyushimatsu, as told before, had two settings. He either slept through the whole thing or didn't sleep at all, wanting to be close to his brothers at all cost. His hyper personality didn't help either. Jyushimatsu was always wanting to go play baseball or play with his brothers, whether he was sick or not.

Choromatsu had told the youngest three to stay in bed for the day. He'd bring them the breakfast and they could eat it in bed this once.

Choromatsu was getting soft. He knew he'd have to wash the whole mattress afterwards.

It'd be sweaty by the time the three would be healthy again, so it didn't really matter if there was food scraps in there too.

Karamatsu and Osomatsu were still in full health.

Choromatsu blames it for the second brother's painful style of clothing. The viruses were spooked off by the leather and sequin.

Osomatsu was probably too lazy to get sick. He also had a generally good immune system, for some odd reason. He didn't really exercise or eat healthy so there was really no logic to why he had gotten the immunity against viruses and other bugs.

"What do you think Karamatsu? Would something simple do for the three?" Choromatsu asked his big brother as he took out glasses and other utensils from the cupboards.

Karamatsu thought for a moment before answering, "Totty probably won't taste anything with that clogged nose of his. Ichimatsu will probably eat anything we make him."

"How about Jyushimatsu?"

"He was still sleeping, so I couldn't really tell how he was feeling", Karamatsu admitted.

"Oh, Jyushimatsu?" Osomatsu appeared in the doorway, "He woke up in the middle of the night. His fever seemed to have calmed down a bit."

"Why didn't you wake me up?! I could've given him some more medicine", Choromatsu sighed, "The medicine's effect must've already worn off. The fever is bound to be back."

"Should I go and get a thermometer?" Karamatsu asked, already going.

"Measure them all!" Choromatsu shouted after him, "Better safe than sorry."

"You really turn into a mother hen when there's something wrong with one of us", Osomatsu huffed with a smirk, "Todomatsu was right. Momma-Matsu."

"Shut it", Choromatsu snapped, "I'll make sure I'll leave you to die then, when you're sick."

"They're all running fevers", Karamatsu told them as he re-entered the kitchen after about five minutes, "As expected Jyushimatsu's is the highest. Totty comes next and Ichimatsu has the lowest of them all. He should be feeling better after taking some medicine and a good rest. He's just too melodramatic."

"Says you", Osomatsu snickered.

Choromatsu nodded in agreement, "Did they say what they'd like to eat?"

"Totty wished to have tea and crackers. Ichimatsu will be fine with tea and dry sardines", Karamatsu told them, "Jyushimatsu mumbled something but I think he wasn't even awake."

"I'll bring Jyushi some crackers, too. Let's see if he'll eat them during the day", Choromatsu said, taking out the needed stuff.

Luckily, he had bought more crackers yesterday knowing they were the number one food for sick people.

He'd give Totty a soda in case he'd be whining to have some later.

"What about me?" Osomatsu whined as he watched his little brother place three cups of tea and some crackers on a tray. Choromatsu also took an assortment of medicine with him before going upstairs.

"Karamatsu will make us something", Choromatsu simply stated.

"Huh? Me?" Karamatsu was taken aback but soon recovered, "Hm! But of course, brothers. Leave it to me!"

He ended up making some bacon and eggs since they were quick to make and he usually didn't end up burning them.

Osomatsu's constant bugging about the food affected the choice. He hung on Karamatsu's shoulders whining how he'd die if the food wasn't on the table and ready to be served in ten minutes.

"Good morning", Choromatsu entered the brothers' bedroom with the tray balanced on one hand while the other opened the sliding door, "I've got some breakfast for you."

Jyushimatsu had rolled next to his big brother at some point and now all three were sleeping next to each other, Jyushi in the middle.

Choromatsu didn't know how they had managed that with the brothers' usual sleeping arrangements but it was cute all the same.

Choromatsu smiled at his younger brothers' behavior as he sat next to the bed, "I got you some medicine too."

Totty turned to look at his brother, "Ah! You got me soda!"

"I knew you were going to ask for it later."

"True."

Ichimatsu reached out and snatched the bag of dried sardines to himself.

"You're welcome", Choromatsu sighed, "I got you some tea too."

The cup was taken too.

"Do you want any, Jyushi?" Choromatsu asked his little brother, who was watching them with half-lit eyes, "I have some crackers and tea. I can get you juice if you'd prefer that."

Jyushi lifted his hands up and whined weakly.

"He wants you to lift him up", Ichimatsu mumbled eating his fish.

Choromatsu did as told and lifted his little brother into a sitting position so that he could at least drink something, "Better?"

Jyushimatsu nodded.

He was pale, Choromatsu noted. The third made a mental note to call Jyushi's doctor later.

Choromatsu fed Jyushi some crackers and his tea before giving him the medicine.

"Poor thing", Choromatsu combed his hand through Jyushi's greasy locks, "I bet you'd like to be doing anything but this."

Jyushimatsu agreed with a tired pout before flopping back down onto the bed.

"There's a baseball game on the TV later today. If you're feeling better by then, I could help you downstairs so that we could watch it together", Choromatsu tried to cheer his little brother up.

Jyushimatsu smiled a bit before burrowing his face to Ichimatsu's stomach.

"Hey", Ichi blushed but let his little brother be. He was self-conscious about his weight and preferred that people didn't touch his mid-section.

Choromatsu smiled, "I'll be back later to check on you. I'll have my breakfast first."

"Alright", Totty mumbled sipping his tea looking content.

"So? How were they?" Osomatsu asked mouth full of food when his little brother sat down to the table.

"Jyushimatsu's doing a bit better. He even ate some of the crackers I gave him."

"Good", Karamatsu sighed, "He looked so pale when I took his temperature and hardly responded."

"He must've still been asleep."

"He gets that from me!" Osomatsu cheered.

"He's not your son!" Choromatsu screamed, "And it's a different thing to be sick and to sleep like a fucking log."

"Touché", Karamatsu laughed.

Osomatsu joined the laughing banging his hand to the table.

Choromatsu sighed loudly. Useless big brothers.

"Don't you have work today?" he finally asked.

Karamatsu and Osomatsu looked at each other, "Yeah."

"Then go!" Choromatsu yelled.

The two scrambled to leave after being yelled at by the third. He could be scary if he wanted to.

"Wait a sec Karamatsu", Choromatsu stopped the two as they were leaving in the doorway, "Could you get me some papers from the hospital?"

"Sure. What for?"

"Jyushi's papers. The radiographs", Choromatsu explained.

"Alright. I'll go get those after I'm done with work", Karamatsu promised.

"No rush", Choromatsu said as he texted something on his phone.

The door closed behind the two oldest brothers.

Choromatsu let out a long sigh before going back to the living room.

He was already tired and getting a headache and it was still late morning. This was going to be a long day.

He decided to call the doctor now and ask him if he had any ideas.

The line beeped for a good minute before the doctor picked up his phone, "Hello?"

"Matsuno Choromatsu here", Choromatsu smiled at the doctor's laid back attitude, "I'm calling about my little brother."

"Ah, Choromatsu! How's the little sunshine doing?"

"The fever has worsened and he has a terrible cough now", Choromatsu explained, "He was hardly awake when I went to feed him this morning. I almost had to make him eat and drink something."

"Poor thing", the doctor sighed, "Have you tried the meds I suggested?"

"Yes. They seemed to help with the situation. Osomatsu said that they had been both awake during the night and that Jyushi had been quite fine. Fever wise that is."

"But the fever is back now?"

"Yes. I promised him I'd watch a baseball game with him in the evening so I hope he'll feel better by then. He'd be devastated if he missed it and watching a recording isn't as exciting."

"I'll prescribe him some new meds which you can try. Keep me updated."

"Karamatsu is coming to get some papers today. You can give them to him."

"Papers?"

"A little plan I came up with. He has some friends waiting for him there."

"Ah! The nurse, right? A lovely young man."

"Yes. Apparently Karamatsu helped him pick up some clothes. I hope the nurse isn't going to be kicked out because of my brother's poor fashion."

"Of course not! But okay, I'll give the papers to him."

"Alright. I'll call you later today if anything happens."

"Yes."

"Bye."

"Bye", the doctor ended the call.

Choromatsu sighed closing his phone.

"Back to work I guess", he then stood up and made his way to the kitchen.

Choromatsu checked their fridge to see what they had and if there was something he could feed his little brothers later.

As he was cleaning the breakfast dishes he happened to notice a letter sitting on the kitchen counter partly hidden from view.

"Hm?" Choromatsu stopped what he was doing and went to check the paper out, "Ah, Jyushi's letter."

Even though Jyushimatsu had tried his best to correct his messy handwriting, Choromatsu could still tell it was his.

Choromatsu looked at the address written on the letter.

He could just guess what his little brother had written in the letter and he was sure he hadn't had mentioned certain events at all. He was too kind after all.

Choromatsu made his way to the living room with the letter in hand.

He placed it onto the living room table and went to look for something.

He soon returned with a familiar-looking cardboard box full of papers and envelopes.

If Jyushimatsu wasn't going to tell her what had happened, Choromatsu would.

The girl deserved to know and Choromatsu was determined to get her to join them when they had the party for the fifth brother.

Choromatsu took out a simple white paper and a similar envelope. Then he began to carefully write about everything the brothers had been through these past weeks.

The three youngest brothers were dozing off upstairs while Choromatsu was occupied with the important letter.

"Hey Ichi", Jyushimatsu mumbled, his voice silenced by the folds of the fourth brother's belly.

"Hm?" Ichimatsu mumbed.

"How many stamps will I need?" Jyushimatsu asked, "Choromatsu bought two sheets but I'm sure I don't need that many."

"Yeah, he bought some extra since we didn't have any stamps at all", Ichimatsu explained, "Hmmm… I'd say two. Two stamps, since it's only a letter."

"Okay", Jyushi nodded burying his face to his big brother once again, "Thanks."

"Yeah, yeah", Ichimatsu blushed petting his brother's head.

Ichimatsu was sure that one of the brothers could mail the letter for Jyushi if he was in such a rush about sending it. That was of course if Jyushimatsu was going to let someone touch his precious letter which was highly unlikely.

He'd ask Choromatsu if he could post the letter or Jyushimatsu was sure to go and post it himself.

Having finished writing his side of the letter, Choromatsu stamped it and put it into his pocket to post later.

Having done that he decided to go and see how his little brothers were doing once again.

He'd take some water and meds for them too since they were sure to be thirsty.

"Hello. How are we doing?" Choromatsu entered the room and went to the window, opening it to let in some fresh air. The weather was nice out so it was okay.

"Better", Todomatsu cheered, "But not great yet."

Ichimatsu nodded in agreement. The medicine had really done its job.

"I brought some cool water with me", Choromatsu said and gave his brothers the glasses.

"Thanks", Totty took the glass with a smile taking a long gulp, "Perfect!"

"Good to hear. Thought you'd like some", Choromatsu smiled as he sat down next to the mattress, "I have some work to do. Is it okay if I do it here? I'd keep you company."

"Sure. Why not", Totty rolled to watch his big brother work, "Only if you get any done, Fappymatsu."

Choromatsu huffed in annoyance, "Shut it. I'll throw you out."

"Of course you would", Totty snickered.

"Just go to sleep. Try to get better already", Choromatsu huffed, "Osomatsu will be the next one to look after you."

That got Totty to shut it.

His motivation the get better suddenly doubled.

Anything but Osomatsu.

Todomatsu liked his money where it was right now and not in the pockets of the oldest.

As expected, Choromatsu did work for two or three hours before he fell asleep on the floor.

Both Todomatsu and Ichimatsu were asleep too.

Only Jyushimatsu was awake.

He looked around the room to make sure the others weren't awake and slowly stood up.

The fifth then made his way to the door, out to the hallway and down the stairs. All of this very slowly.

Jyushimatsu, after scooting down the stairs, walked to the kitchen to get his letter.

"Stamps, stamps, stamps", he mumbled as he went through the messy kitchen counter.

He finally found the stack under some unpaid bills and bread crumbles.

"Found them", he lifted the sheets up in triumph.

How many did Ichimatsu say the letter needed? Two? Three?

Jyushimatsu's brain, messed up by both medicine and fever, tried to think back to the big brother's words.

"Let's put three", Jyushimatsu finally nodded to himself and slapped the stamps onto the letter.

The whole thing was a mess in the end. The stamps were nowhere close to a straight line in the upper right corner. The edges were already wrinkly, too.

Jyushimatsu looked at his work with a proud smile before putting it to his pocket.

He then went to get his jacket and slippers.

Jyushi stopped and decided to put on his trademark yellow hoodie, too. People who saw him outside in a jacket and pajamas would call the cops for sure.

The yellow hoodie and the jacket went on with more effort than usual and the slippers felt like they weighted a ton.

Jyushimatsu opened the door slowly listening for any signs of his brothers waking up.

When there was none, he took off to the nearest mailbox he knew was next to the market the brothers frequented.

He'd be back before the two oldest brothers got home.

No one would even notice he went somewhere.

He closed the door behind him with a quiet click.

The next stop, the market and the mailbox.

Choromatsu woke up with a loud yawn.

When had he fallen asleep? How long had he been asleep anyways?

He looked out of the open window to see that the sun was already setting.

There were dark clouds gathering in the horizon.

Choromatsu thought it was for the best if he closed the window and he went to do just that.

"Alright", Choromatsu turned to his sick brothers, "What would you like for din-"

His question came to a halt as he counted the heads sticking from under the blankets.

One, two…. Two.

Only two.

Ichimatsu and Todomatsu.

"Jyushimatsu?" Choromatsu asked, "Where's Jyushimatsu?"

"Hm?" Ichimatsu checked from under the blankets and then the pillows.

No sign of the fifth.

"Is he in the bathroom?" Todomatsu tried.

"No way. He has been too tired to even stand up", Ichimatsu was getting worried. He had turned every pillow and the blankets, too, and there was no sign of Jyushimatsu, "Wait a second! He asked me about the stamps earlier today!"

"That idiot!" Choromatsu huffed in desperation, "You're saying he, who can't even stand up himself, has somehow decided and managed to get up and deliver the letter himself?!"

Ichimatsu nodded, "Well, something like that."

"It's going to rain tonight", Choromatsu looked outside with a frown, "It's cold too."

Ichimatsu nodded, dialing his little brother's number.

But the ringtone was heard from downstairs. Jyushi must've forgotten to take the phone with him when he went.

"Stupid younger brother", Choromatsu hit the wall, "I'll call Osomatsu and ask him if he's seen anything. He should be getting back home by now."

"I'll let Karamatsu know", Totty took out his phone and began typing a text message.

"Please do, although he should be enjoying a meal with his friends now."

Jyushimatsu. Where are you?


	30. Chapter 30: A Hazardous Delivery

"Good day to you miss. I was told that there would be some papers for my dear little brother", Karamatsu leaned onto the hospital counter as he eyed the receptionist from behind his shades. He still had them on despite being inside.

Fashion is pain they say.

"Um", the female nurse stared at the young man. She was just about to hit the call button when Karamatsu spoke up.

"Matsuno Jyushimatsu. I'm his big brother."

A lightbulb on the nurse's head, "Ah! Yes. You two look a lot alike now that you mention it. The cheerful guy from a couple weeks ago?"

"Yes, that's him. Well, we are sextruplets and all", Karamatsu mumbled but couldn't help but smile a little.

"There are six of you? Oh the mother…", the nurse laughed as she went to look for the papers.

Karamatsu was left to wonder what the nurse had meant by that. Their mother was just fine. Right?

"Here we go", the woman came back with some papers, "Prescriptions for medicine."

Karamatsu eyed the papers, "Prescriptions? I thought he had something else."

"No, this is what he had. The doctor wrote them today."

"Alright then. Thank you", Karamatsu shrugged and turned to leave.

"Wait! Karamatsu!" it was a familiar voice.

Karamatsu turned to look who was talking and saw the young nurse he had gone shopping with before. He was running down the hall towards him.

"Hi!" Karamatsu smiled as the male stopped in front of him panting in exhaustion, "Didn't you say no running in the hallways?"

"Shut it", the nurse laughed, "I almost missed you even though I asked your brother to get you to come here."

"Huh?" Karamatsu was dumbfounded.

"I had a patient and it kinda stretched and before I noticed it I was five minutes late already-", the nurse began explaining why he had been late.

"No, no. Not that one", Karamatsu stopped him, "My brothers planned this?"

"Actually I and my boyfriend but your brothers helped me."

"Why?" Karamatsu didn't understand.

"We wanted to thank you somehow, for giving me the courage to ask my current boyfriend out. I bet I would never have done it otherwise", the young man blushed, "The new clothes are also awesome. Work wonders on my self-esteem."

"How are things with you two?" it was Karamatsu's turn to blush. He hadn't expected that his actions had such an impact.

"We're actually planning on maybe getting married in a couple months", the nurse explained, "If we can get the money."

"That's great to hear! Congratulations!" Karamatsu clapped his hands, "Make sure to invite us if you do."

"Thank you. And I will. Our ride should be here shortly so will you wait for a couple of minutes while I go and change?"

"Sure. I'll sit right here."

The nurse came back just as a sleek sports car drove to the hospital's parking lot.

"That's him", the man pointed at the car, "Let's go."

Karamatsu followed the young man to the car and went in when he opened a back door for him. He had never seen nor been in a car so fancy. He didn't know how to act.

"Hello", a middle-aged man greeted Karamatsu from the driver's seat, "You must be Karamatsu. My boyfriend's been talking about you a lot."

He had a suit on, he probably drove here straight from work, and his dark hair was sleeked back with some gel. He gave out an aura of pure confidence.

To be honest, Karamatsu was slightly jealous.

Karamatsu puffed his chest proudly, blush still evident on his cheeks, "What? Are you possibly a Karamatsu boy, too?"

"Eh? Su-Sure", the man sweat dropped as the young nurse sat next to him clicking his seat belt on.

"Can't lie to yourself."

"How was work?" the man changed the awkward subject and gave a peck to his young boyfriend's cheek, "Busy as always?"

"Of course but that's the way I like it", the young man smiled, "Helping people is what I live for."

"Yes yes. So, the restaurant?"

"Restaurant?" Karamatsu asked from the backseat.

"Oh, have you already eaten?" the nurse asked sounding worried, "Your brother told me you wouldn't have."

"No, I haven't."

Both of the men sighed in relief, "Good. Then what is it? You don't like restaurants?"

"No, not that. I just didn't expect you to take me anywhere", Karamatsu told them sweating nervously, "I don't exactly have the money right now."

"But of course we'll take you! It's a thank you for what you've done for us!" the two told him.

There was no way Karamatsu was going to say no when the two men stared at him with sparkling eyes from the front seat telling him how much they owed him.

Even he had to swallow his pride every once in a while.

The three went to a local restaurant. It was not too fancy but not too casual either.

The menu also had foods Karamatsu actually knew which saved him from embarrassment. No fancy names or ingredients either.

The waiter took their orders and the three were left to wait.

"Like it? We thought that this was a good place", the nurse explained, "We actually came here during our first date, too."

"The food is great and affordable. The two most important things", the older man explained with a smirk knowing that Karamatsu already agreed with him.

"I never knew about this place", Karamatsu admitted, "I have to bring my brothers here someday."

Both men nodded, "Great idea."

The food arrived shortly and the three began eating while chatting about their day and work in general.

Karamatsu told them about Granny. The two promised to pay her a visit someday. Just hearing about everything she made got them to drool.

The duo in turn told Karamatsu about their work.

One worked as a nurse of course, while the older man worked in the housing business. Both were successful and lived in a small flat together with an aquarium full of fish.

As the three were ordering their desserts, Karamatsu's phone suddenly rang.

Karamatsu checked the caller ID and seeing that it was the third brother's, he decided to answer it.

"Sorry. I gotta answer this one. It's my little brother", Karamatsu explained as he excused himself.

"Sure. Is it something bad?" the young man asked.

"Hope not", Karamatsu made his way to the restrooms.

"Yes? Has something happened, my brother?" Karamatsu answered his phone.

"Jyushimatsu's gone missing?!" he then screamed after hearing what his little brother had to say, "Have you checked the whole house?! No? Then check!"

"Not there?" Karamatsu asked as his little brother was done with the search. He was already chewing his nails in stress.

"Hm, sure. I'll go look for him right away! No, they won't mind I bet. I'll just explain the situation to them. They'll understand."

Karamatsu ended the call and rushed back to the trio's table.

"I really need to go now! Do you mind?" Karamatsu gathered his stuff and was almost out of the door before the two men got to answer.

"Is it Jyushimatsu?!" the nurse asked sounding really worried, "Did something happen to him? The doctor said that he was sick."

"He's ran away from home", Karamatsu quickly explained, "To deliver a letter it seems."

"Has it been long?! He could be anywhere!" the nurse stood up taking his jacket, "Dear, pay for the meal. I'll take the car and drive Karamatsu around the town!"

"Sure thing!" the man told them as he rushed them to get going already, "I'll follow you by foot when I'm done here."

"Thank you", Karamatsu was at a loss of words. The kindness of the two men was out of this world.

"It's okay. You've done so much for us. Now it's payback time!" the nurse ran to the car with Karamatsu and hit the pedal as soon as the second Matsuno's butt had touched his seat.

They would find Jyushimatsu or die trying, literally, with the speed they were going.

Choromatsu was pacing around the brothers' small bedroom glancing at his phone every minute or two to see if the fifth had contacted them. No such luck.

"Where could he have gone?!" Choromatsu was frustrated, not because of his brother but because he had been responsible for him, "If he has really gone to mail that stupid letter I swear to god I'm gonna-"

"He has surely gone to mail that", Ichimatsu mumbled from behind his own phone trying to contact Jyushimatsu too, "And I helped him write that so I'm also to blame for this. Don't take it all upon yourself."

"Yeah. We should've all watched him", Todomatsu agreed with a nod, "And when was the last time we actually managed to stop Jyushimatsu from doing something? I recall never."

Choromatsu sighed. His brothers could be supportive if they wanted to.

"Osomatsu is looking for him now. I told him I'd be here and look after you two", Choromatsu told them after reading a text he had received.

"Really now. You called them without even checking if Jyushi was downstairs or not. I say you go look for him too", Totty huffed, "You're worried about him."

"But you two are-"

"Sick? Yes. In danger of passing out on the street and dying of hypothermia because of the rain? No. Just go", Ichimatsu mumbled sounding worried himself.

"You two will be alright by yourselves?" Choromatsu asked uncertain.

"Who do you think we are?" Totty smirked, "Go fetch our little sunshine."

"Yes", Choromatsu nodded as he exited the room.

Osomatsu was on the move, too, having quickly been excused by Granny after hearing about the situation.

She had even told him to call her if Jyushi wasn't found in half an hour. She'd join the search after that even if it'd destroy her back.

"How's Karamatsu doing?" Osomatsu was on the phone with Choromatsu who had just left the house to join the search too, "Any luck?"

The oldest brother was on his way to the store where the closest mailbox was located. Choromatsu had told him about their little brother's possible plan and the letter on the phone.

Choromatsu had told him Jyushimatsu would be there if he hadn't passed out on the way.

Osomatsu, for once in his life, ran. He ran faster than he had ever ran not caring about the cold rain or the people staring at him.

He finally arrived to the mailbox only to not see any yellow color near it.

He even went as far as to ask the store if they had seen his brother.

They told him they had seen his brother walking away about ten minutes ago. He had caught their eye with his wobbly walking but they had thought he was only drunk.

Osomatsu thanked them for pretty much nothing and ran out to catch his little brother.

"Jyushimatsu? Jyushimatsu?! Where are you hiding?" Osomatsu shouted to every small crook and corner he could find. He checked every park, bush and even trash can.

Jyushimatsu had never been really good at hide and seek. Osomatsu remembered how the six had played the game when little and Jyushi had left his hiding place or made noise five minutes into the game. Finding him had been easy.

Then he finally came to a dark alleyway about half way to their house.

There he spotted a yellow hoodie next to a trash can.

But the yellow lump wasn't moving, which worried the oldest.

"Jyushimatsu?" Osomatsu came to the lump.

It was the fifth brother, wet and pale safe for the red cheeks, shaking like a leaf.

He was also unresponsive.

Osomatsu quickly called the second and third brother to let them know that he had found their little brother and that he wasn't dead although in bad condition.

Granny was the next he called to make sure she wasn't on the move already. Osomatsu was sure she had trained the cats to sniff Jyushi out during these few minutes. At the least.

In about a minute a car came brakes singing and Karamatsu hopped off of it.

"Is he alright, brother?!" he kneeled next to the two on the ground not even introducing his friend to Osomatsu.

"He's super cold. Hasn't been responding at all either", Osomatsu explained, taking off his hoodie to put it on his little brother. Any warmth he could provide he would.

"How is he?!" the young nurse asked from behind the wheel, "Should I take you to the hospital?"

Osomatsu was just about to take the offer, when he remembered how much his little brother hated hospitals.

He'd see fever induced dreams about his last stay for sure if they were to take him there.

"We'll take him to our place. Choromatsu will call the doctor and ask him to come if needed", Osomatsu finally said, lifting his brother up to his back.

"I'll take you there. The faster he is there the better", the nurse said as he came to help the two brothers carry the unconscious fifth into the car.

"I really don't know how to thank you two", Karamatsu mumbled as the four drove to the Matsuno's house.

The young man smiled a little despite the atmosphere, "How about we finish that dessert someday? That'll be enough for us."

He had already called his boyfriend and told him to meet up at the brothers' house.

"Osomatsu!" Choromatsu was already by the door when the car came to a halt in front of the house. He had ran straight home after hearing that their brother had been found, "How is he?"

Despite being soaked himself, Choromatsu hadn't even changed clothes.

"He seemed like he was a bit more awake in the car. Tried to seek some warmth", Osomatsu told him carrying their little brother into the house, "What did the doctor say?"

Both Osomatsu and his little brother were soaked in both water and sweat. Osomatsu was panting loudly.

"He told us to get him warmed up first", Choromatsu followed the oldest into the house, "We should get ready to his fever spiking after that. He'll probably need an ice bath."

Ichimatsu and Totty were ready with towels and hot water bottles. They both looked really worried as they saw the condition their brother was in.

Even the usually stoic Ichimatsu was twisting his hands in worry, following his little brother with his gaze.

The brothers decided that the living room couch would be the best choice, since it was the nearest and carefully placed the fifth brother there, covering him with a blanket.

Jyushimatsu mumbled something as he was lowered onto the couch.

"What is it Jyushimatsu?" Ichi came closer so that he could hear what his little brother had to say, "I didn't hear you."

"C-Cold and hot", he mumbled again, "Do-don't."

"You don't get it how you can be hot and cold at the same time?" Ichi asked.

The others were surprised how well the fourth could tell what Jyushi was thinking. Well, they did spend the most time together.

Jyushi nodded, or at least tried to.

"It's alright. You're running a very high fever right now but you were out in the rain too", Ichimatsu tried to explain, "Let's get you some dry clothes first, okay?"

Totty handed his big brother a set of pajamas and a hoodie.

The cold and wet clothes which stuck to Jyushi's skin soon came off and were switched to the warm and dry ones.

Choromatsu re-entered the room, which he had left about two minutes ago, with a mug of warm tea and offered it to Jyushimatsu in hopes of warming his ice cold body up even a bit.

Jyushimatsu didn't drink the tea though. He was already back to his fever induced sleep.

The brothers watched the fifth sleep for about an hour while anxiously doing whatever.

Osomatsu was seemingly reading a comic while calmly lying on the living room floor. In truth, he was glancing at his little brother every second trying to make sure he was alright.

Karamatsu was polishing his sunglasses with a little more strength than necessary.

Choromatsu was sitting right next to Jyushimatsu with a phone in hand ready to call the doctor and tell him to get an ambulance for them.

Ichimatsu was lying his head on Jyushi's feet looking at his sleeping face with a frown. Ichi honestly looked more scary than worried.

Totty was googling remedies for high fevers and cute pictures he could cheer his big brother with later.

Jyushimatsu began whining and turning around during the second hour.

The fever had finally come back and with more power than ever.

Ichimatsu was fidgeting in his spot by Jyushi's feet thinking of how he could possibly help his brother.

"I think we need an ice bath", Choromatsu finally concluded, "Not that I wanted it to come to this."

"Karamatsu, go get the bath ready!" Osomatsu began ordering his brothers around once again. He was the oldest after all.

"Yes!" Karamatsu quickly stood up and rushed upstairs.

"Totty, check if there are any ice cubes in the fridge!"

"On it!" Todomatsu saluted and ran to the kitchen.

"Let's carry him, Choromatsu", Osomatsu told his little brother as he finally made his way to the sofa, "We'll need to get him upstairs somehow, after all."

"W-What about me?" Ichimatsu really wanted to do something, "What should I do?"

Osomatsu observed his little brother as he got ready to carry Jyushi.

Ichimatsu honestly looked so lost.

"You make sure you're ready to comfort your little brother", Osomatsu told him with a straight face, "He trusts you a lot so you'll get him to calm down if anyone."

Ichimatsu was confused by the compliment but nodded anyways, determined to do his very best.

The bath was soon ready with ice-cold water and some extra ice.

Karamatsu was shivering by the mere sight of it.

If something was to relieve the heat, this was it.

Karamatsu was drying his hands with a towel when the rest arrived. Except Totty, who had come in earlier to help with prepare the bath.

Jyushimatsu was as red as a tomato and extremely limp in his brothers' hands.

"Put him in carefully", Choromatsu explained, "He'll struggle so get ready to hold him down. Ichimatsu, get ready to comfort him, too."

Ichi nodded, serious.

And just as Jyushi's feet touched the ice-cold water, he flinched away. Despite his half-awake state at best, the water was something he seemed to want to avoid.

The brothers put Jyushimatsu into the bath, holding him up so that he wasn't going to submerge and drown.

Just as Choromatsu had said, Jyushimatsu began to struggle as he was fully lowered to the cold abyss.

"Co-Cold!" he managed to mumble, teeth rattling.

Ichimatsu came and sat right next to the bath, not caring about getting soaked. He took his brother's hand and began to stroke it.

"I know but it's for your own good", he mumbled quietly, "It'll be over soon so just try to stay still."

Jyushimatsu let out a long, agonizing whine before settling down apparently trusting his big brother's word.

"Good boy", Ichimatsu pet Jyushi's head.

The brothers' had all jumped because of the heart-wrenching noise their little sunshine had made. It really sounded like he was suffering, and a lot.

Choromatsu had left the room a bit earlier to call Jyushimatsu's doctor.

He was gone for about three minutes and when he came back his gaze was downcast and posture deflated.

"What is it?" Osomatsu could tell something was wrong, "What did the doc say?"

Choromatsu ran his hand over his face and sighed loudly, "He called the ambulance. They're coming this way now."

"Why? Is it that bad?" Totty asked from the floor. He was holding an icepack over Jyushi's head.

"He says we shouldn't take any risks. It's better to be able to monitor Jyushimatsu and give him the treatment he needs"

Ichimatsu looked at his brother's sleeping face.

Jyushimatsu's face was flushed but his expression was calm. He had lost consciousness once again.

"He'll hate it", Ichimatsu then mumbled, "The hospital."

"I know", Karamatsu agreed, "But we'll be there by his side."

The brothers could hear the sirens getting closer. The ambulance was quick, as always.

Jyushimatsu was going to be alright. The brothers were going to make sure he was.


	31. Chapter 31: Murphy's Boy

**I have to write something here first before you get to reading.**

 **Thank you so soooo much for the reviews and everything! I feel so special!**

 **And also, sorry for the long wait. I had an entrance exam this month and I was studying for it this last month or so. After that I did pretty much everything I had missed like cleaning up and reading a couple books.**

 **I also had these ideas for a couple of one shots. So, would you like to read some if I was to write them? I mean I'll need to begin planning this story forward and I think that I could write the one shots I've already planned while trying to come up with ideas for this fic.**

 **If you want to know more my Tumblr is always open! I'll probably also write a bit more in the chapter's notes on AO3**

The ambulance was there in record breaking time. The brothers barely even had the time to think if it was legal to drive that fast when the vehicle was already by their doorstep.

Jyushimatsu's doctor was the first thing to jump out of the ambulance, and doing that while it was still moving. His white doctor's coat fluttered as he ran to the scene.

"What's the situation?" he rushed to the brothers' side who were still gathered inside, around the living room couch. He was panting and had clearly been moving at full speed ever since Choromatsu's call.

Talk about caring.

"Not worse but not better either, I think", Choromatsu mumbled as he replaced an icepack on the fifth's forehead to a fresh one, "Is there any room in the car or do we need to follow you?"

"Two of you can ride with us. The rest must-", the doctor leaning to look over his patient began but was interrupted.

"The rest can ride with us!" it was Karamatsu's nurse, well, technically not 'Karamatsu's nurse' but you get the point, "We'll chase the ambulance."

"You!" Karamatsu screamed, "I thought that you two had already left!"

"How could we?! When your brother's well-being is in the line?! I know I wasn't his nurse but I did grow quite fond of him you know!" the nurse screamed back with a pout.

His boyfriend behind the wheel seemed to agree as he was nodding all the time with that ever-present smile of his. He seemed just about ready to burn some rubber and break every speed limit in town.

The staff from the ambulance ran into the room after the doctor had performed a basic check-up on Jyushi. They quickly rolled him off on a stretcher and into the waiting vehicle. The exchange happened easily as Jyushi was still out cold and wasn't fit to protest the idea of going to a hospital.

Ichimatsu and Choromatsu got to ride in the ambulance, while the rest jumped into the waiting sports car.

The ride back to the hospital was a wild one. The three in the car of the young couple were quite sure there was some drifting involved and a couple of screaming people running away from and under their way.

In the end, they were all feeling the vertigo from the sharp turns and high speed as they finally came to a halt in front of the hospital. Karamatsu even had a greenish tint to his face.

Jyushi was rushed into a room with staff waiting for him and the doctor as soon as they arrived.

The six others were left to wait for the situation to clear itself.

White color is said to make things bigger and be pure but in this situation the color only worked to distress the brothers ever further reminding them that they were once again in the hospital, waiting to hear about their precious brother.

"He's going to be fine. He's a tough one", the young nurse sat down on the waiting room's chairs with the brothers offering them some coffee.

"Hm", his boyfriend agreed with a nod.

"Of course he will! That Jyushimatsu wouldn't let a small bug like this stop him!" Osomatsu cheered. It was unsure whether he was trying to lift the mood or if he really was just that positive in a situation like this.

"But he was just in a coma", Todomatsu mumbled, hanging his head low. He was trying to distract himself by going through all his social media and all his aliases but to no avail. It was clear that he was upset, "Why Jyushimatsu? What has he ever done to deserve any of this?"

Karamatsu placed a comforting hand on his little brother's back and began rubbing circles on it, "World isn't fair, my brother. I'm sure Jyushimatsu knows this too."

Choromatsu watched the youngest, biting his lip. He knew that Totty had always been affected the most when it came to the fifth. For example they had all been separated in their first year and Jyushi's class hadn't been the nicest. They hadn't understood Jyushi's constant state of glee and his hyperactivity. Then there had been the whole thing with baseball and the lazy eye.

It wasn't like they hadn't touched the rest of them, too, but Totty seemed to carry the emotions longer and harder than the rest. Harder than Jyushimatsu himself actually.

"Just like the Murphy's Boy", Choromatsu sighed.

"'Anything that can go wrong will go wrong' huh?" Osomatsu cited, "But it's not like it has all been bad."

Karamatsu agreed with the oldest, "Jyushimatsu has a job with the nicest lady in town."

"And she bakes us the best things! And even I got a job through her!" Osomatsu added.

Even Totty had to agree now and abandon his depressing thoughts, "Remember the Jenga game just the other night? When Jyushi thought he could blow that brick off of the very bottom."

"There was spit everywhere", Ichimatsu, who had mostly kept to himself until now added with a tug of a lip, "Choromatsu was the one who cleaned that up."

"I was", Choromatsu huffed, "Jyushi did win though."

The five smiled together and continued to remind each other of the fun things they had done with their brother until the doctor finally arrived.

Ichimatsu was the first to stand up. Guess he had been worried after all, despite trying to look as calm and nonchalant as possible.

"How is he?" he asked as soon as the doctor was within a hearing range from them.

"Stable. He's on a drip to help reduce the fever and get rid of the bug wrecking his system. He was also dehydrated so there's also that in the IV", the doctor began, "I'm afraid he has developed pneumonia from being in the rain for so long in that condition. His weak immune system must also be to blame."

"What does that mean?" Karamatsu asked.

"Jyushi's lungs are inflamed. He'll have trouble breathing and terrible coughs", Choromatsu told him. He had read about the illness just the other day.

"Yes, other symptoms include chest pain, headaches and other aches", the doctor added with a confirming nod, "We have him hooked onto an oxygen tank just in case."

"Could we see him? Is he awake?" Totty asked, clinging to Osomatsu who seemed to be progressing all the big words.

"I'm afraid he's asleep. His body was beyond exhausted when we got him here", the doctor told them, "But you may go see him. I bet he'd feel a lot safer if he woke up surrounded by familiar faces instead of us hospital staff."

"True", Choromatsu smiled alongside his brothers.

As the brothers followed the doctor into their brother's room, the nurse and his boyfriend turned to leave.

"It's not like we can do much more for them right now", they agreed.

But just as they were about to leave the building, there was the sound of running.

"Wait!" it was Karamatsu. He had seen the two leaving.

Karamatsu came to a halt in front of the couple, huffing despite the short distance.

"What is it? You should be by Jyushimatsu's side", the nurse told him.

"T-Thank you so much!" instead of running back to his brothers like the nurse had told him, Karamatsu shouted and bowed deep.

"W-what? For what?"

"For everything. For the food, the help, the ride", Karamatsu told them, "I really owe you one. I have no idea how I can ever repay you."

The couple stole a glance from each other before smiling, "Let's say you come and finish that dessert with us after Jyushimatsu is doing well again and we'll call it a deal."

"Just like we told you earlier", the boyfriend added.

"You really are the super couple of Akatsuka", Karamatsu smiled, "Sure, we'll finish that dessert."

"Now go! Your brothers are waiting for you!"

"Thank you!" Karamatsu waved them one last time before following his brothers into a room where they had entered before.

It was terrible to see their sunshine of a brother hooked into so many machines once again. Hadn't he just been released from their death grip?

He was also pale, very pale, if it wasn't for the angry red cheeks and the little rivers of sweat rolling down his face one could've thought that he was one with the sheets.

There was a heart monitor, just in case. It's steady beeping bringing both reassurance and dread to the five in the room.

Jyushimatsu was wrapped up in icepacks to help getting down the temperature. There was of course a meter to tell the nurses their patient's body temperature at all times in case it went too low instead.

There were two IV bags hooked into Jyushi's not-broken arm. One containing hydration and one a mix of medication.

As Karamatsu finally entered the room, the four already there were surrounding the bed, comforting the fifth, and themselves, in various ways.

Ichimatsu and Totty were holding Jyushi's hands. Ichi the one with the tubes and other stuff and Totty the one still in the cast.

Choromatsu was silently petting Jyushimatsu's hair despite it being greasy and disgusting from the sickness. He wore an expression of complete serenity despite definitely having an inner debate with himself over something.

Osomatsu was seated next to his little brother's feet. He'd stroke them from time to time but mostly spoke. He'd tell Jyushimatsu, himself and the rest how strong the fifth Matsuno was and how a bug like this had never been able to take him down. Not now, not ever. He'd also tell him to get better soon and throw that 80 meter ball.

Karamatsu watched the scene unfold before him for a good minute. After that he joined the oldest by the bed's foot. He began humming the song he and Jyushimatsu had composed together during the little brother's last stay.

Jyushimatsu's hand would twitch every once in a while and his brows would come together in a frown.

Ichimatsu watched his little brother's face in concentration.

"Are you dreaming?" he leaned in to wipe some sweat off of Jyushi's face, "Don't worry, we're right here."

What Ichimatsu didn't know was that the fifth was indeed dreaming.

He was having a nightmare.

Jyushimatsu woke up, bolting upright on his bed.

He was drenched in sweat and panting quite a bit as he scanned the room around him.

After calming down considerably, he threw the now partly wet cover off of him and went to the bathroom. He had to wake himself up and what better way to do that than a cold shower. It'd get rid of the remnants of the nightmare but also the sweat.

The shower was a short one. Jyushimatsu was worried when he had realized that he had been alone when waking up. It must've meant that he was late for something and that his brothers were sure to leave him none whatever that something was.

The next thing he did was to dress up and run downstairs.

His parents were sitting around the living room table enjoying late breakfast when Jyushimatsu rushed into the room his sock clad feet sliding on the wooden floor.

"What did I miss?!" he huffed as he finally came to a halt in front of the two heads of the household.

Matsuzo looked at his son like he had grown a second head, "You didn't miss a thing. What do you mean?"

"I overslept didn't I? The rest are already gone."

"Yes, you did oversleep", Matsuyo told him, "But you seriously didn't miss a thing. Sit down and eat before it gets cold."

"There's still some left for me?"

"Of course!" Jyushimatsu's mother told him with a huff, "You seriously think that we two could eat this all and leave you with none?"

"N-No, but maybe the rest-"

"The rest?" Matsuzo still had the same look on his face, "Dear, do you have a fever? Are you feeling alright?"

"I am! I'm just wondering where my brothers are!" Jyushimatsu was getting irritated by his parents' stupid questions. He had no fever. To be honest he felt a lot better than in the last couple days.

"Your brothers?" his father and mother looked at him in worry which Jyushimatsu had a hard time understanding. Of course he was looking for his brothers. Hadn't they heard what he said?

"I understand if you'd tell us normally you know. We know you've wanted to have siblings for a long time but…", his father began, looking nervously for help from his wife, "Are you sure you didn't hit your head while coming down the stairs?"

"You're the only child, Jyushi dear", his mother finished.

"What?"


	32. Chapter 32: It's a Dream Isn't It?

**Hello again! I've been silent for quite a long time once again. The reason this time being that I finally got a job for the summer.**

 **Please go check out my Tumblr meronstumbles for more information and some important stuff regarding my fics.**

"You're the only child, Jyushi dear", his mother finished, slowly lowering her cup of tea onto the table. Her hands trembled ever slightly as her motherly instincts told her that something was wrong with her son.

"What?" lucky for them, Jyushimatsu didn't have a cup or anything else in his hands, or it would've dropped for sure.

Jyushimatsu was quiet for good ten minutes, simply staring at his now cooling plate of breakfast. The parents stayed still too, not daring to do a thing. The only sounds were birds singing outside and the occasional word or two exchanged between neighbors or friends on the street.

"Are you really sure you're alright?" Matsuzo was the first one to make a move and went to feel his son's forehead for a fever, "You came home yesterday and just went to sleep without a word. We were worried. That's not like you."

"N-No. I'm alright", Jyushimatsu mumbled, still in shock about the sudden news, "Guess I didn't sleep that well after all. Sorry I made you worry."

"It's alright, but tell us if you feel worse", Matsuyo told him, giving him some extra food onto his plate, "We'll be here for you."

Jyushimatsu hummed his response and immersed himself in eating. His parents still gave Jyushimatsu worried glances as their son gobbled down his food.

"Thank you for the food", Jyushimatsu rose from the table, wiped his mouth and quickly ran upstairs. His parents were left to bite the dust and think what their son was up to.

Matsuzo let out a long sigh, sipping his drink. And he had thought that the teenage years were a bad time to be a parent. Apparently he had been wrong.

"We're going shopping later!" Matsuyo shouted, trying to make sure his son heard her, "I'll put some food in the fridge and money on the counter. If you need anything else, just call. Do you need anything? Socks?"

"Yeah, yeah", Jyushimatsu had heard his mother and replied. He was a man on a mission and too preoccupied to really care about some sock right now, "No, I don't need a thing! Thank you!"

"Is he really okay?" Matsuzo asked his wife, "He seems really out of it for some reason."

"I wonder", Matsuyo shrugged, shaking her head, "Let's see how he's doing when we come back. We'll take him to see a doctor if he's not better or doing worse. It could just be sleep deprivation or even dehydration and nothing serious too serious."

The father nodded, agreeing with his wife. They'd check on his son later and maybe even bring him something good. They hadn't had any cookies or other pastries in a very long time. Maybe they'd buy some today to eat with some tea. He bet Jyushimatsu would like that too.

Jyushimatsu was in his and his brothers' room, looking for anything that would show his parents they were mistaken and that he wasn't the only son. It was a very hard task of course, but Jyushimatsu was determined to prove his parents wrong. He'd turn the whole house upside down if necessary.

"How can someone forget giving birth?" Jyushimatsu asked himself as he rummaged through cardboard boxes full of junk, "I mean, the pain is already something you'd remember for the rest of your life."

He then moved downstairs, after an unsuccessful search upstairs. He made sure he had cleaned up after himself. Facing the mother's rage, who usually cleaned up around the house, wasn't something he'd want right now.

Jyushimatsu knew his parents kept photos of the family scattered around the living room. There was everything from holiday to baby pictures and Jyushimatsu knew them by heart after having to dust them one by one more than often.

"Jyushimatsu! We're leaving!" his parents told him from the doorway, looking at their son running around the living room with worry in their eyes, "Jyushimatsu?"

"Hmm? Yeah, sure", Jyushimatsu only mumbled, "Have fun!"

"Sure!" Matsuyo smiled, taking her purse and checking its contents once again, just to make sure. She had forgotten to take her keys once and wasn't going to repeat that mistake. She had stood by the door in the cold autumn weather until Jyushimatsu came back from school since the husband was away that day.

"I wonder if he even heard us", Matsuzo mumbled, shaking his head as the two closed the door behind them.

"I really don't know", Matsuyo admitted, patting her husband's back, trying to comfort him the best she could.

The two linked their hands together, shrugging their son's odd behavior off as some post-teenage drama plus sleep deprivation. At least they tried their best to, since parents were always worried of their children's well-being. A small nap and alone time would cure it. Meanwhile, they could spend a nice afternoon together, enjoying each other's company. They hadn't had a proper date in ages.

"I can't believe why there are no photos of us!" Jyushimatsu screamed as he face planted onto the living room floor, hitting his face on a stray pillow rather than the hard floor. Lucky for him.

He was still for about five minutes before suddenly jumping up, "I'll call Chibita and the others and ask them! Yeah!"

He quickly ran to the family phone and began dialing the first number he could remember. It was Chibita's, because he would always call them to pay their tab. The number had burned itself somewhere to the back of Jyushimatsu's head by force.

The phone rung for quite a bit. And then it rung some more. And more.

Jyushimatsu stayed on the line the whole time, waiting to hear his friend's ever so cheerful voice. Damn, he'd pay his debt if Chibita would answer.

But in the end, there was no answer and Jyushimatsu was forced to put the phone down.

Next up was Totoko. The family's number was still written on an old, faded post note next to the phone. The two families had been friends since forever, after all. Totoko used to come and play with the brothers all the time when they were younger. The parents would enjoy a cup of tea and a nice chat in the meantime, watching their children play and fight together. Mostly fight knowing the seven.

But there was no luck with the fish sellers' daughter either as she wouldn't pick up. Jyushimatsu was left to stare at the discarded receiver in a mix of disbelief and frustration.

"Alright, outside", Jyushimatsu huffed, fetching his hoodie and shoes. He was soon out of the door and running to where he knew Chibita parked his cart every day. The young man was a true man of habits and finding him anywhere else would be outrageous. It would be like Chibita would suddenly change from making oden into making sushi. Absolutely not possible.

Chibita might just be too busy to answer and if Jyushimatsu was to wander around for long enough, he was bound to cross paths with Iyami at least. The man was hard to miss, since he's always be searching for a new way to make some money whether it was by trying enterprising or by just cheating people to give him their money. Jyushimatsu could ask him if he had seen his brothers around. He could sometimes even swear that Iyami could smell the sextruplets seeing their paths would almost always cross.

The streets were very quiet. Almost too quiet to be honest. A light rain drizzled on Jyushimatsu, not really enough to get him wet but managing to annoy him a bit. He had, of course, not thought of taking an umbrella with him and wished that this wouldn't turn into a serious shower. Otherwise he'd be cold and sick on top of all else.

Jyushimatsu turned his light jog into a run and was soon where Chibita was supposed to be. The small red cart was there, but the owner wasn't. Jyushimatsu sat down to wait if Chibita was only on a lunch break or something and would come back soon. The cart had a canopy too, so Jyushimatsu would stay dry even if the sky decided to suddenly fall.

But after good half an hour of waiting and absolutely no sign of the oden fanatic, or anyone else at that, Jyushimatsu decided to leave. There was no point staying in one place when he was searching for someone.

Jyushimatsu left no stone unturned. He checked every bridge, corner and alleyway in his search for Iyami or anyone who could explain to him exactly what was happening.

After wandering around the quiet town for the whole day, Jyushimatsu finally had to give up and return home. He was getting hungry too, and searching while hungry simply wouldn't do. He'd also ask his parents what they thought was going on. Was there some sort of an event he had totally forgotten and where everyone had gone to? Or had everyone simply vanished?

"I'm home!" Jyushimatsu opened the door with his keys, which he had remembered to take with him for once, and let himself in, "What did you buy?"

After some apparent silent treatment from the parents, Jyushimatsu threw his hoodie off, kicked his shoes somewhere and went to the kitchen to see if his mother was cooking something.

She sometimes went into the zone when cooking and ignored everything and everyone around her. Matsuzo hadn't been able to contact her for three hours once. She had only responded when the father had slammed some pots together right next to her head. She had gotten mad and hit him. She had thought that she had managed to spill one of the pots she had boiling on the stove, wasting the perfectly good food.

"I know you want to get the dinner ready but even ignoring has a limi-", Jyushimatsu huffed as he entered the room expecting to see his mother and a stove full of pots and pans.

There was no mother and no pots or pans either. There was only a lonely note and some small coins on the counter waiting for him, just like the mother had told him.

Jyushimatsu picked up the note, already knowing what it contained and turned it in his hands a couple of times. He then put it down and pocketed the coins. He could use those later.

Huffing in frustration he checked the fridge to see the promised meal waiting for him. Jyushimatsu shrugged and decided to heat the meal up and eat it. It was rude to waste food after all, like his mother had always taught him.

"Dad! Where's mom?" Jyushimatsu moved from the kitchen to the living room where his father usually took shelter, watching TV, while the lady of the house ruled over the kitchen. Jyushimatsu had his food and a glass of juice with him.

"Dad?" Jyushimatsu poked his head into the room. But of course, the room was empty. The only thing even hinting that his father had been in the room was a remote and a crossword magazine on the table, alongside a bowl of nuts to snack on.

Jyushimatsu sighed in frustration, sitting down by the table with his dinner, "Seriously. Where is everyone? If this is supposed to be some kind of a surprise party or something it's not funny! It's not even my birthday yet."

The empty house didn't reply, as expected, and Jyushimatsu was left without an answer.

Jyushimatsu sighed once more and took a bite out of his food. All he could do now is eat and collect his energy and thoughts for tomorrow's search.

He even switched on the TV to see if it would answer him unlike everything else today. Sadly, there were just some boring commercials on every channel he checked. Jyushimatsu soon got bored with the replay of the same stupid sports equipment ad for the seventh time and switched the thing off. He threw the remote for good measure.

All Jyushimatsu could do now is take a quick shower and go to sleep.

Easier said than done. It was surprisingly scary to walk in the apartment alone, late at night, with only moon lighting his way. Jyushimatsu must've wished to be the only son at some point, but not this. Putting the futon down had been terrible. Not only didn't he have enough hands to carry the thing, but it was heavy too. The sheer size of the empty space was enough to cause Jyushimatsu to lose his sleep when he finally snuck under the blankets.

Jyushimatsu woke up somewhere early in the morning to the sound of heavy rain outside the bedroom window. He crawled to check, but when he looked out, the rain was already gone. There were only puddles on the ground, just like yesterday.

"What the heck?" Jyushimatsu grumbled as he made his way to the bathroom, scratching his head on the way. He almost slipped on some clothes and fell face first to the bathroom door. What a glorious day.

He actually checked how many toothbrushes there were on the sink's edge, although he was slowly losing hope. There were only three, his yellow one and his mother and father's electric ones.

Jyushimatsu slowly descended the stairs, yawning loudly in the process. He hadn't even bothered to change from his pajamas. It wasn't like he was going anywhere.

He then went to the fridge and took out a carton of milk for a bowl of cereal. He wouldn't even try to cook anything. He'd burn the house down on top of all else.

Jyushimatsu checked the mailbox too, but the newspaper hadn't come yet. There were a couple old bills though, which Jyushimatsu took in and threw onto the kitchen counter. The parents could check those later.

Jyushimatsu slowly ate his breakfast, looking out of the window only to see some birds sitting on the balcony's railing. He smiled a little as the two birds began grooming each other, showering each other with affection.

Jyushimatsu sighed loudly, swirling the spoon in the almost empty bowl of cereal. He wasn't really hungry, to be honest, so he lazily played with the food.

"Where are you?" Jyushimatsu finally broke down. He covered his face with his hands and let out a long breath. He was clearly fighting back the tears.

It was raining once again. The droplets hit the house's roof with a pitter-patter. In any other case, the noise would've probably been comforting but now it just managed to deflate Jyushimatsu's mood even more.

It was almost as if the sky was crying with him.

"It's lonely. Come home", Jyushimatsu whispered with a broken voice. He was hugging a pillow now, sitting on the sofa and wrapped in a blanket.

The warmth was somewhat comforting but couldn't replace the warm hugs of the other family members. Jyushimatsu just curled up more, letting out a quiet sniffle.

"Jyushimatsu?" there was a faint voice, "Jyushimatsu, are you alright?"

Jyushimatsu shot up, looking around the room like a madman, "Who's there?!"

"Are you crying? What's wrong?" there were multiple voices now. They were faint and locating them seemed almost impossible.

Not that Jyushimatsu wasn't going to try.

"Where are you?! Show yourselves!" Jyushimatsu ran to check the upper floor, slamming each door open. There was nothing. Jyushimatsu even checked the cupboards.

After ten minutes of futile searching, Jyushimatsu crumpled onto the floor. He couldn't take this anymore. This was just too much.

"Show yourselves!" Jyushimatsu was pleading now, his voice cracking with each syllable.

"I can't take this anymore", he finally mumbled with a broken down sob.

"Jyushimatsu! Open your eyes!" the voice was back as suddenly as it disappeared the first time. It was clearer than the first time and seemed to be coming from somewhere really close to Jyushimatsu.

Jyushimatsu could finally identify the voices. His face brightened up and he stood up from his previous almost fetus-like position on the floor.

"Ichimatsu!" Jyushimatsu smiled as he opened his eyes to a bright light.

"Jyushimatsu!" Ichimatsu and the rest were calling their brother, who was crying in his fever-induced sleep. He had just began trashing around too and the nurses had to restrain him to prevent their brother from hurting himself, especially his broken arm, any further.

"Wake up!" Totty was holding his big brother's hand as he encouraged him to open his eyes to reality. Anything he was seeing no wasn't real.

"Come on brother! Let us see those pretty eyes of yours", Karamatsu tried.

Then suddenly, Jyushimatsu opened his eyes and tried to bolt upright on the bed. Of course he didn't make it since he was restrained, and was left in a panicked state. He was trying his best to understand why he couldn't move.

"Jyushi, calm down!" Ichimatsu hushed his crying little brother. He had already placed a comforting hand onto his shoulder and was giving it a firm squeeze as if to tell Jyushimatsu that his brothers were here with him.

Jyushimatsu managed to take some long, calm breaths. Choromatsu had been right next to him with a paper bag, ready to help his hyperventilating little brother. He was relieved to see his help wasn't needed as his knowledge based on only some stray articles and movies.

"That's the spirit, little bro!" Osomatsu praised Jyushimatsu, who was beginning to calm down to the point where he could see the things going on around him.

Karamatsu nodded next to the oldest, giving Jyushimatsu a thumbs up and a bright smile.

"Wha-What? Where?" Jyushimatsu mumbled, looking around. He seemed really confused as to why he was in the hospital bed. The IV drip also confused him. He stared at it for quite some time. He still didn't seem to register that he was tied to the bed quite yet. Choromatsu was actually working on that, trying to undo the restrains.

"You're in the hospital", Totty moved to sit next to Jyushimatsu, "Do you remember getting sick?"

Jyushimatsu nodded slowly. He thought he could remember something like that.

"You got a really bad fever and pneumonia", Choromatsu explained, "We had no choice but to take you back to the hospital. Sorry."

Jyushimatsu simply nodded, more interested in being as close as possible to his brothers. He tried his best to move closer to Ichimatsu and Totty, who were sitting on the bed but failed as his body was weakened by the fever. He then whined loudly.

"A nightmare", Jyushimatsu finally mumbled quietly, wiping tears from his eyes.

The two understood what their brother wanted and moved to hug their brother, trying their best to mind his hand and the IV drip. They weren't going to ask any details as their brother was upset enough already.

Osomatsu, Karamatsu and Choromatsu soon followed, trying their best to fit onto the bed with the three younger ones.

When the nurse and doctor arrived and they saw the pile of brothers on the bed, they looked at each other in amusement. It was a welcome change to the scene from earlier. Five brothers waiting for their brother to wake up once again as if the last time hadn't been enough. The doctor then performed a quick check-up on the patient, noting the wide smile on Jyushimatsu's face, and left the six to enjoy each other's company. It was a really welcome change.


	33. Chapter 33: Worrywarts

The doctor came in during the early morning hours to tell the brothers the bad news. He had answered to the call about Jyushi's nightmares and him waking up. He and Jyushimatsu's nurse had rushed in right away. After performing a basic check-up and giving the now awake patient some medication he confirmed that Jyushimatsu would still need to stay in the hospital. Much to his brothers' disappointment.

Although his fever had come down considerably and the pneumonia was almost gone with the help of medication, Jyushimatsu was refusing to sleep even after two days. He was afraid of closing his eyes and it worried both his doctor and nurse. The brothers were worried too, of course.

He had only told that he had had a nightmare, nothing else. The doctor had tried to get Jyushimatsu to tell him the details in hopes of helping but Jyushimatsu refused. He told that it wasn't so bad and that he would manage. He had said the same thing to his brothers when they had tried earlier, so the doctor had to give up. He really hoped that he could trust his patient's word.

Choromatsu sighed. He had finally managed to get Jyushi down for a nap.

It had been a struggle lasting two hours but the five brothers finally emerged victorious. Jyushimatsu was down.

"The trial will be in three days", Choromatsu told the others in the room as they returned to their seats, "We will need to get ready."

Osomatsu nodded, agreeing with his little brother, "Right. Mom and dad said that they'd come back home in time for that. They want to be here for Jyushi, like everyone else."

Ichimatsu held Jyushi's hand, while he slept, trying his best to comfort his little brother and drive away any nightmares he might be having. It seemed to work as Jyushimatsu slept on peacefully, not stirring even once.

"Do you think we can make it?" Totty asked, "The guy is a doctor for god's sake. He must have both power and money."

"Don't worry, brother!" Karamatsu pet Todomatsu's head, trying to reassure him, "We'll win for sure!"

Totty swatted Karamatsu's hand away.

"He got a lawyer", Choromatsu mumbled, "I heard that he is a good one."

"No one will be good enough to get him out of this one", Osomatsu huffed, "We have evidence, witnesses and most important, each other."

Karamatsu nodded with a smile. Leave it to Osomatsu to stay positive in a situation like this.

"We will win", Totty whispered, squeezing his phone in his shaking hands.

"We have to", Choromatsu agreed, "For Jyushi's sake."

Ichimatsu nodded, determination shining in his tired eyes.

But for now, Jyushimatsu had to sleep and regain his energy or he was never going to get out of the hospital.

"Hi boys! How are things here?" it was the nurse. His shift must've ended already.

"We're here to see if you've already collapsed", the boyfriend was there too, with a tray full of coffee cups. He must've come straight from work. Maybe to see his boyfriend, maybe to help him.

"Don't be so harsh!" the nurse hit his partner playfully on the head, "They've been up for 24 hours straight. Even more."

If the black bags under the brothers' eye were anything to go by, the boyfriend wasn't that far off. They really needed sleep.

"You can take a little break. We'll watch Jyushi for now", the nurse told Choromatsu, "I brought coffee too, so that we can pull an all-nighter."

"I thought it was for them", the boyfriend whined. He wasn't a type to stay up late. He liked to sleep.

"No, it's for us."

"Thank you", Osomatsu smiled as he stretched his sore muscles, trying his best to find a comfortable position to sleep in.

It was time to play rock paper scissors again for the sleeping spots.

Karamatsu was in the tub once again.

"I thought I won", Karamatsu mumbled as he took a pillow with him to the bathroom.

"Good night!" Totty sang. He had gotten the sofa and didn't even try to hide how pleased he was. It was the best spot in the room.

Ichi slept next to Jyushi. He didn't even take part in the game. He just climbed next to Jyushi and fell asleep.

The brothers let him. There was no stopping Ichimatsu.

Granny came in a bit later, when all six of the brothers were asleep.

"Hello", she opened the door carefully, "Oh, my boys are all asleep!"

"Yes they are", the nurse smiled as he gave his chair up for Granny to sit on, "We made them. They looked like zombies."

"Thank you", Granny sat down, "I bet. I came here to do it myself but I guess you beat me to it. Thank you for that."

"It's no problem, really", the boyfriend smiled as Granny offered him a pastry from a bag she had brought with her. It was full of the stuff, like always.

"Agreed", the nurse nodded, "We're all in this together, after all."

"We need to be awake for the trial too", the boyfriend agreed, "Choromatsu said that it'll be held in only three days. It wouldn't make a good impression if the six slept on their seats while the jury spoke."

"That soon?" Granny couldn't help but ask, "Let's hope that Jyushi will recover enough in time for that."

"Agreed", the two men nodded in unison.

Suddenly, the basket Granny had brought with her moved.

"Ah!" the boyfriend jumped in surprise, "A cursed basket!"

Granny laughed, "No, it's not cursed. Sorry for keeping you in there."

Granny opened the basket and out jumped a black and white cat. It was Batter.

The cat meowed loudly and stretched its sore muscles before glaring at Granny as if to scold her.

"I said I'm sorry", Granny scratched the cat's chin, trying to beg for forgiveness.

"Is this Batter? I've heard a lot about him", the nurse asked as he crouched down to the cat's eye level to greet the feline, "Hello little one. How are you?"

"Yes. He wanted to come in to see how Jyushi was doing. Wouldn't stop meowing at the door before I took him with me", Granny explained, watching how the cat would react to the nurse being so close.

Batter ignored the nurse completely, turning its back to him and going to greet Jyushimatsu instead.

The cat seemed to take more caution than usual as it sniffed Jyushi's face before curling next to his cheek. The feline then began to quietly purr, closing its eyes in satisfaction. Granny knew the cat would've wanted to roll around on top of the brothers, meowing loudly. It held back.

"Well if that isn't a good cat", the boyfriend whistled, "You've trained him well."

"Why thank you, but I haven't trained him that much. He learns by himself", Granny told him, "My two other cats look at him for example. At least I hope so."

"You have two more? Where are they?"

"Back home. They're still too shy to come with me to anywhere. Anyways, smuggling one cat is easy but I don't think that three would go that easily. I'd need a bigger basket", Granny laughed.

Jyushimatsu was the first one of the six to stir from his slumber. He had slept for nine hours under the watchful eye of the three people awake in the room. And what's best, he had had no nightmares.

"Huh?" Jyushi felt the lump next to his cheek, "What?"

"That's Batter. He insisted on coming to see you", Granny explained.

"Hi Granny", Jyushi yawned, "Hello Batter."

Jyushi scratched the cat as it uncoiled and stretched its whole body. Batter then continued to snuggle to the boy's cheek and even lick it.

"Would you like something to eat?" the nurse asked Jyushimatsu who sat up on the bed, trying his best not to wake up Ichimatsu who was still sleeping next to him. Jyushi even made sure to cover his big brother up with his blanket.

"Yes please", Jyushi smiled as the nurse stood up to go fetch his patient something light to eat.

"No. Stop it right there", Granny stopped him though, pulling him back, "I brought food for all of us. Just wait a second Jyushi dear. I'll give you something."

"Thank you", Jyushi couldn't help but let out a small laugh. Granny really was something else. She'll spoil the sextruplets rotten, if she hadn't already. The boys should be adults and take care of themselves already.

"You're welcome. I can't have you eating that bland and tasteless hospital food", Granny explained as she pulled out a piece of food after another, placing them on a tray on Jyushi's bedside table, "Sorry for that, but it's true."

"No harm done", the nurse waved his hand, "It is bland for a reason. Sometimes."

"Is that food I smell?" Osomatsu rose from the floor where he had been sleeping, "Smells delicious."

"Yes it is. Want some?" Granny smiled as he offered Osomatsu a roll of bread which he took and ate in seconds.

"Revived!" Osomatsu sighed as he stood up with his hands in the air, "Hi Granny. What else do you have?"

"Anything you could ever want", Granny offered Osomatsu the bag, "And hello to you too, Osomatsu."

The rest of the brothers woke up little by little, all coming to Granny for food and a cup of coffee.

Ichimatsu was the last one to wake up, snuggling to Jyushi for warmth when he did. He was so happy. His little brother and a cat in the same, warm bed as him. This was life.

"Good morning, Ichi", Jyushimatsu hugged Ichimatsu when he finally decided to roll off the bed, taking Batter down with him. The cat hissed as he jumped down onto the floor. The feline was surprised, not mad.

"Did you sleep well?" Granny asked Ichi as she offered him a kitten paw bun. One of her new regular items.

Ichimatsu nodded, rubbing the remains of sleep out of his eyes. He accepted the bun and took a big bite.

Jyushimatsu's cellphone rang at one point, alerting the whole room.

"Hello?" Jyushimatsu answered the phone. All the others in the room gathered by him, listening to who was on the other side.

"Hello dear? How is everything?" it's Matsuyo, the sextruplet's mother, "Choromatsu told me what happened. Is everything alright now?"

"Yes, I'm much better", Jyushimatsu reassured her, "Is dad with you? How are you?"

"Thank god. You really don't deserve all of this", the mother sighed, "Never mind us! It's you we want to hear about. It's been awful."

"How come?"

"We've been trying to return home for the last week", she sighed loudly, "But we've always failed. Whether it's a natural disaster, problems with the system or theft, we always end up missing our flight. I'm so sorry we're not there yet but we will be. Soon."

"It's alright. Everyone is here for me. Just take care", Jyushimatsu told her.

"But!" she tried to argue, "We'll be there for the trial. I promise!"

"Just don't do anything stupid", Jyushimatsu tried to tell his parents. He knew the last sentence went on deaf ears.

"You think they'd try to swim across the ocean?" Totty whispered to Choromatsu.

Choromatsu nodded, "Don't give them any ideas."

"Promise me you'll take a plane", Jyushimatsu told the parents.


	34. Chapter 34: Let the Trial Begin!

The day had finally come.

The trial would be held today and justice served. Raw, hardcore justice.

Jyushimatsu could finally be at peace when he knew that the man who had tormented him for so long was behind bars. Judging by the evidence the group had gathered, the man wouldn't be coming out soon either. Possession of drugs, mistreating a patient as well as misuse his position and authority.

Choromatsu had trained the brothers for the past week for this, so that they wouldn't mess up even the smallest thing. Yes, sitting down wrong was a thing and Choromatsu had made sure that would be the least of their worries today.

Every one of the six brothers knew the etiquette so well by now that they could've recited it in their sleep. At least Choromatsu hoped so. He hadn't had the time to actually test out his theory.

Their biggest worry now was the doctor, and his army. The lawyer he had hired was more than good, Totty had checked his website and other social media, even going as far as to dig deep into his personal life. Spotless, his past was spotless. Not one trial lost.

Not that the brothers didn't have an army of their own. Jyushimatsu's new doctor, the nurse, Granny and all five of the brothers would be there to give their testimonies and take on what happened. And they wouldn't give up, not now, not ever, until the man got what he deserved.

The parents had finally managed to return home the day before too, and were going to aid their sons and the rest the best they could.

They had gotten some help from a kind young gentleman and his small private plane, as the mother told them afterwards. They had flown all the way back home on that small, rigged plane. They stopped only once to refuel but were soon back in the air once more.

The brothers were sure the plane was hijacked, by their mother. Armed with the will and rage of a caring parent. There was nothing more powerful in the world. The father must've just tagged along, explaining their situation afterwards. Not that he didn't care. He just wasn't as straightforward as his wife.

The two had taken a taxi from the airport and speeded to the hospital their son was staying in. Even if the police had decided to give them a ticket for speeding, they would've had a hard time catching them. The duo should've tried racing when they were still young, they could've made it far.

They then continued by busting in from the sliding doors of the hospital, positively making a scene. The nurses tried to hold the two long enough to ask them who they were in to see or if one of them was injured in any way and in need of first aid. They didn't quite make it. Matsuzo did shout something about seeing their son when the duo was half way down the hallway of rooms.

At least they knew the number of the room Jyushimatsu was staying in. Choromatsu had shared the information a bit earlier. Otherwise they would've kicked in all of the doors before finally finding Jyushi in one of the white rooms.

The door of the room stayed intact, just because the doctor held it open. He had just finished checking how his patient was doing that morning as the two worried parents stomped in. He was surprised to say the least but didn't dare to stop the duo. He could just hope that the two knew the family and weren't up to anything bad. He had his hands on his phone, just in case.

Matsuyo went right in for a hug. Her arms were trained and long enough to take on all her sons at once, which she did. She had had a lot of practice throughout the years.

"We're so happy to be back!" Matsuyo sighed, enjoying being embraced by her sons.

"And we're happy to have you back, mother!" Karamatsu told her.

"We missed you!" Totty cried.

"Oh, Todomatsu. I missed you too!"

"Hey", Karamatsu mumbled.

The doctor decided to invite himself in to join the family reunion. He stayed in the background while the hugs and kisses happened though. He didn't want to disturb but the mother was sure to have a lot of questions for him once she was satisfied with the cuddles. The father definitely looked like he had a ton of questions for him already. He could only prepare himself for the flood of questions.

"It's today, isn't it", the mother finally stopped and decided that it time for business.

"Hm", Choromatsu nodded, his face still buried in his mother's shoulder.

"Jyushimatsu, how are you feeling today?" she then asked the second youngest.

"Good", Jyushimatsu told her from the bed, "Doctor said I'm fit enough to go."

"I checked him. There should be no problems. We should just make sure your son does not get too stressed out", the doctor said as he stepped in with a clipboard. He then continued to explain all the things the patient had gone through these past weeks and answered any questions the two parents had. He, too, was happy that the two were finally reunited with their sons in this difficult situation.

"Ah, so you're Jyushi's new doctor. I must thank you for all you've done for us", Matsuyo bowed politely, like did Matsuzo.

"We don't know how to ever pay you back", the father admitted.

"It's quite alright. I'm just here to do my job, that's all", the doctor was flushed red, clearly embarrassed of all the praise he was getting, "Seriously, quit it. The nurse has helped me a bunch too."

"You're the boss here. Learn to take a compliment", the nurse, who had been with the doctor to assist him with the check-up, laughed, "You're way too bashful to be a doctor."

"I think it's cute", Matsuyo smiled, "But seriously, thank you so much, you two. You've done an excellent job."

"If there's anything we can do for you, just name it", Matsuzo added.

"Really, it's just my job. Honestly. All I want is for my patient to get better", the doctor waved his hands, dismissing the parents' idea of rewarding him in any way. He didn't want any of it.

"Oh my! Boys! Do we have anything to wear?" Matsuyo finally let go of the idea of rewarding the doctor to focus on something else important. Much more important.

"Don't worry, mother!" Karamatsu piped up, "I made sure to visit home and get us some clothes."

"Why him?" Totty whispered to Osomatsu, who could only shrug. Karamatsu had offered to go so they let him.

"Great! We should get dressed", Matsuyo clapped her hands, checking what her son had brought with him. She hoped in was decent and didn't have any glitter. Good thing Karamatsu kept the glitter on his clothes and didn't spread it around like some sort of a plague.

Karamatsu had brought the brothers' suits. Simple dress shirts in the brothers' colors, black dress pants and a jacket. Each had a bit detail in it, bringing out the brothers' individual personalities.

For example, Karamatsu's black jacket had leather details.

Osomatsu had the most basic suit there was. Just a black jacket and black pants. Both full length.

Choromatsu had a black vest under his jacket.

Ichimatsu wore a black vest instead of a jacket. He always thought that they were too much.

Jyushimatsu, whose pants were short, had suspenders on, for his socks. He also wore a black vest.

Totty had a black hat and was otherwise dressed similar to Osomatsu.

The three older brothers had black ties while the three younger ones had bowties.

The mother and father were dressed in a simple black dress and a suit.

"You really look like you're the mafia or something", the nurse clapped his hands together. He loved it. The brothers looked so good. A welcome change to the comfy, dirty and smelly clothes they had been wearing for weeks and weeks now.

"Well, we're going to destroy that guy", Osomatsu smiled, "Might as well look good while doing so."

"Looking professional might get us some more reliability in the jury's eyes", Choromatsu added, glaring Osomatsu, "Of course it's not supposed to go like that but we're not taking any risks."

"Agreed", the nurse nodded, "This is war. And we'll win it."

All in the room nodded in unison.

"Good thing you managed to come too", Choromatsu whispered to Granny as they sat on the bench in the court room. She had her walking stick with her. She hardly used that so it must've meant that she had had some trouble getting up that morning.

The place was quite empty. Maybe because this would be a trial with closed doors as was the parents' wish. They definitely didn't need any audience. The jury had complied, seeing the victim's situation.

"Of course I'm here!" Granny huffed, "I wouldn't miss this for the world. Little Jyushi needs all the support he can get."

"How about the cats?" Ichimatsu asked, sitting next to Granny.

"Actually, Batter would've loved to come along. Cats, or any others pets, are not allowed in the court room though so I told him to wait and guard the house until I came back with the news."

"You should've told them he's your therapy animal or something", Ichimatsu mumbled.

"He'll be fine", Granny reassured, "He was just a bit mad when I closed the door right to his face. He'll forgive me when I give him some tuna tonight."

Ichimatsu was still a bit saddened by the fact that the feline wasn't there. It was a witness too, after all. Ichi would've wanted to hold a furry animal while listening to the jury speak as well. He was nervous.

"So you're the woman my boys keep talking about? It's so nice to finally have the chance to meet you", Matsuyo offered her hand to Granny, who gladly took and shook it.

"It's my pleasure!" Granny smiled, "Now I know where the boys get their politeness."

"Oh you!" Matsuyo laughed. They had already clicked.

The trio talked for a while about mundane things and the sextruplets, enjoying the moment. Matsuyo had fun talking with someone who actually had something positive to say about her sons. That usually wasn't the case. Granny was more than happy to talk about the boys, who she had come to know like her own sons during these past months. Matsuzo was happy to just listen. He was glad to hear his little boys were growing up to be great men.

When the heavy oak doors of the room finally opened and the jury stepped in with his lackeys, the room was dead quiet once more.

The man didn't look that special. Only his way of dressing made the difference and gave the needed sense of power. He looked like a normal family man, not someone who had to hear about the bad thing in this world almost daily.

And right behind them, the doctor, escorted by two policemen all the way to his seat.

Behind them, was the previous nurse, also escorted by policemen. He didn't look quite as confident. He was sweating and stiff as the men guided him to sit down next to the doctor.

Just the sight of the doctor made the brothers' blood boil. He even dared to have a cocky smile on that ugly, guilty face of his.

Jyushimatsu was seated on the bench next to him with the new doctor and his nurse. Jyushi couldn't help but follow the man with his gaze as he walked to his seat. He looked calm. Either he had accepted his fate or he was planning something. Jyushimatsu couldn't' tell.

"It's okay. He can do no harm to you", the nurse whispered to Jyushi's ear. He had noticed that the patient had gone rigid.

"Yes, we're here for you. There's nothing to worry about", the doctor added, placing a comforting hand on Jyushi's shoulder.

"Let's make that man's smile fall", the nurse told the two.

"Yeah", the doctor agreed.

"Quiet!" the jury whacked his hammer down twice, silencing any whispering going on in the room.

Choromatsu got his papers ready, he would have a chance to speak for Jyushimatsu, telling the brothers' take on the situation. He bit his thumb. He was getting more nervous by the minute. The brothers had decided that only one of them would speak. Otherwise they'd all speak at once and no one would understand them.

The presence of his brothers calmed Choromatsu down considerably. He knew what he had to do. He was a man on a mission.

"The trial of Matsuno Jyushimatsu and his doctor is now in session!" the man whacked his hammer down once again.

The war was on, once again. And it would be much messier than last time.


	35. Chapter 35: Present the Evidence

The first ones to be heard were the police and the investigator, who were also the ones who caught the doctor back in the hospital.

Choromatsu could still remember the call he had made to the men that day. How could he forget? The situation had been terrible.

After making their vows to tell the truth and nothing but the truth, the two stepped up to face the judge.

"So, tell me what you know", the judge spoke from his high seat, "About the doctor and his patient. You've already showed me the evidence but let's go through them once more."

"Yes sir", the police saluted while the investigator only nodded his head.

"The doctor, as we already know, was caught with illegal drugs in his immediate possession. But after investigating things further, I can tell you that the man has done this before", the investigator explained.

He then took a long breath before continuing, "The accused has worked both in Japan and overseas. He originally got his doctor's license from Tokyo, where he studied and got his first job as a doctor in a small hospital. We've revealed though, that he soon got fired. The circumstances were unclear at the time. We are almost sure it had something to do with misuse of medication, as we heard from his old coworkers when we interviewed them. They told us that the man was rather welcoming of alternative ways of treating illnesses. He had usually learned those from some book. He had a ton of them in his office too."

"The accused didn't get a sentence back then since the investigation was inconclusive. We can't help but believe that the evidence was tampered with", the police added, "The doctor then moved to work in America. He studied some more and learned how to use methamphetamine during that time, too."

"He moved back to Japan when he was sure his past was long forgotten. He got a job in Akatsuka hospital, where no one had even the slightest idea of the man's crimes. He had made sure of that by destroying any evidence that surfaced during his time as a doctor there", the investigator continued.

"Now we ask the patient's current doctor. Is this true?" the judge glanced towards the bench Jyushimatsu was sitting with his doctor and nurse.

"Yes. I had absolutely no idea nor did the others. When we'd ask about his previous job, he'd reply by saying that he had moved to America right after graduating. We never dared to doubt him after he proved to be so good in what he did", the doctor stood up and explained.

"Alright, you may sit down", the judge told him, "Now let's hear the accused's side of the story. You may stand up."

Jyushimatsu's former doctor had listened to the accusations, all while seeming incredibly calm. Now he stood up, facing the jury head on.

"Thank you. As the investigator told you, I have worked in America. I collected data performing numerous studies on the topic of using methamphetamine to treat ADHD and other similar ailments. And while I also studied other things, the ADHD treatment caught my interest. I believe that our facilities here in Japan aren't simply enough to treat the patients as they are right now. I felt the need to introduce a new form of treatment", the doctor stated calmly, "What I saw could be used in Japan too. The results were astounding."

"You said you were using the drug to treat the symptoms of ADHD yet the patient never had a diagnosis for it. The drug is also illegal in Japan", the judge stated, waiting for an explanation.

"He gave me every reason to believe that he had ADHD that wasn't treated properly", the doctor smiled, he was getting cocky with all his knowledge, "I, as a doctor, had to do something."

"So you diagnosed the patient without asking him first? You then continued to administer the drug to a patient who was unable to make the decision himself and without asking his legal guardians?" the judge asked to make sure the information he had was correct. He didn't want to believe it.

"Yes. I believe in my skills as a doctor enough to make a diagnosis that simple", the doctor told him, "And the medicine worked. The patient calmed down considerably."

"Enough. I don't need to hear any more of this", the judge huffed. He had met this guy once or twice before this and he already didn't like him one bit, "The current doctor of the victim, please tell me what you think."

"Thank you. I'll be more than happy to", Jyushimatsu's doctor stood up, the nurse following suit, "As you already know, I was assigned to be Matsuno Jyushimatsu's new doctor after the previous one was arrested. I am a children's doctor by education and I'm not going to hide the fact. You might think I'm not suited to take care of an adult patient, but things have gone very well with him. Just ask Matsuno if you don't take my word."

The nurse nodded, "And I was to become Matsuno's new personal nurse. The old one was dismissed after reports of suspicious activities came to light."

"The patient was almost unresponsive in the first days I met him", the doctor continued, "You have already seen the results of the blood tests from that time on which I've pointed out for you the necessary facts. His system was a mess, trying its best to survive the foreign matter being forced in."

"Matsuno showed signs of extreme anxiety and depression in the weeks that followed", the nurse added, "We were truly lucky that the patient had such a big support network. Especially his brothers have been a great help in the patient's recovery."

"As Matsuno got better, we had the chance to interview him and perform check-ups. And from what I've seen and heard, I have my reasons to doubt the former nurse's innocence", the doctor glanced towards the accused nurse.

"Elaborate", the judge told him.

"While performing full body check-ups, I found weird bruises and other injuries unrelated to the drug given to the patient before. After also hearing the patient's stories of how he felt humiliated and used, I can only think that he must've been used. I believe that this all happened when the patient was still in a coma and unable to resist", the doctor stated. He lowered his head. He had kept this fact a secret from the brothers and the rest. Only he and the nurse had known before this.

And as expected, the brothers almost jumped off of their seats. Choromatsu glanced towards the doctor as if to tell him to say that what he had just said was a lie. Too bad it wasn't.

"How do you believe the patient was used?" the judge asked. He didn't necessarily want to ask this question but he had to.

"While I didn't see any signs of forced entry, I did see that the injuries were focused around the genitalia and the general area around it", the doctor explained. He felt so bad telling this all when Jyushimatsu's mind had tried its best to forget it all.

"We have a reason to believe that the nurse pleasured himself", the nurse added when the doctor couldn't continue anymore, "He might've ejaculated onto the patient and even made him touch his private parts. Of course, while the patient was still unconscious."

Jyushimatsu hadn't said or done a thing while the two spoke and it worried the brothers. His face was black and pale as if he wasn't quite here. Good luck that the judge had sharp eyes.

"That's enough. I notice that the patient isn't feeling too well", the judge silenced the duo and waved the nurse to check the patient.

"Jyushimatsu? Are you feeling alright?" the nurse sat down next to Jyushimatsu, who was hugging himself, "Do you want a glass of water?"

Jyushi only shook his head before mumbling, "Please continue."

"Don't. We won't continue if you don't want it", the nurse hugged Jyushi, "It's not worth it."

"But we need to catch him", Jyushi whispered to the nurse's shoulder.

"It's alright. The man is as fine as imprisoned already", the nurse reassured his patient, "Do you want to step out for a bit?"

Jyushimatsu nodded. He could use some fresh air.

"I'm sorry judge, but I believe that my patient needs to get out", the nurse stood up, holding Jyushi's hand in his.

"Do what you see is best for him", the judge nodded, "He won't be able to tell us anything in that condition."

"Thank you very much", the nurse bowed his head as he escorted Jyushimatsu out of the room while the brothers' worried gazes followed the two. They would've loved to go and hug their brother but they stayed put.

The adults were inhumanely calm in this situation. They must have some sort of an advanced coping method. The brothers could've bet that at least Granny would've jumped and shouted something but she too, stayed put. Her grip on her purse was stronger than ever though.

"Do you have anything to say?" the judge turned to face the nurse now accused of assaulting his patient, "You may talk now."

The man stood up, shaking on his feet. He clearly had nothing to defend himself with.

"U-Um, I-", the nurse began but soon shut his mouth.

"Just admit it", the doctor sitting next to him sighed, "You have nothing to defend yourself with, you idiot."

"Shut it", the judge banged his hammer down, telling the other accused to shut it and let the nurse speak for himself.

"I-I have nothing", the nurse finally admitted, lowering his head in shame.

"So you admit to doing all the things the doctor told us just now?" the judge asked, ready to smash his hammer down and lock this fucker up for good.

"Yes. I don't have a lawyer or anything so I have no reason to tell you lies."

"Good boy", the judge nodded, "I find this man guilty as charged."

The hammer slammed down. The whole room echoed.

One down, one to go.

Choromatsu was the next one to speak.

He straightened up and walked to face the judge, a stack of papers in hand.

The rest of the brothers kept their fingers crossed. If someone could do it, it was Choromatsu. The rest of them had absolutely no chance.

"Thank you for letting me speak", Choromatsu bowed before giving his vow, "I am here to represent the siblings, parents and friends of Matsuno Jyushimatsu, the victim in this case. I shall tell you our side of the story."

"Please do", the judge nodded.

"We were with Matsuno Jyushimatsu from day one since he was admitted to the hospital where the accused worked. Jyushimatsu had collided with a truck while walking back home one day. You can imagine how upset we were by the news that our brother had injured his head and hand, which was now broken. At least one of us stayed with him 24/7 until he finally opened his eyes. We were relieved to be able to speak with Jyushimatsu again and couldn't wait until he would be released and could get back to living a normal life he deserved", Choromatsu began.

"Then the doctor decided to give Jyushimatsu the drugs. He slipped them in with the patient's usual meds so that he wouldn't suspect a thing. After that, it felt like things were only going downhill. And now, after almost a month of being in and out of the hospital, Jyushimatsu is finally getting better. He has returned to work and is including himself in our daily activities. We still can't help but notice the aftermath. The anxiety our brother suffers from time to time. He is afraid of taking his medicine and flinches when his ordeal is even mentioned. We want our sunny and smiling brother back and we believe that the first step to the right direction is to get this monster of a doctor to jail", Choromatsu finished with a huff, glaring at the accused doctor for good measure.

"Thank you Matsuno Choromatsu. Please return to your seat", the judge nodded, approving Choromatsu's story as evidence for the case.

*Good job, brother", Karamatsu whispered to Choromatsu as he sunk to his seat, letting out a long sigh.

"You did great", Osomatsu hugged his little brother.

"Thanks", Choromatsu whispered, focusing his attention back to the trial that was still going on.

The judge spoke with his right hand man after which the man spoke to a walkie-talkie. He was calling Jyushimatsu back in to give his testimony.

Jyushimatsu was soon back in and on his seat, his nurse following suit. Jyushi had gained some color back to his face but was still a bit shaky on his feet.

"Matsuno Jyushimatsu, please step forward and tell your take on all of this", the judge told Jyushimatsu with a gentle smile. He tried not to push the victim too much but they needed the information. He'd make sure to stop the hearing as soon as Jyushimatsu looked uncomfortable.

Jyushimatsu just nodded before standing up.

Everyone in the room stared at him, waiting to hear him speak.

"I'm Matsuno Jyushimatsu and I'm here to tell you what I went through."


	36. Chapter 36: Prove it!

"I'm Matsuno Jyushimatsu and I'm here to tell you what I went through."

Choromatsu would be lucky to have any of his fingers left after this. He'd need to stop biting them every time he was feeling nervous. Osomatsu even tried to hit him gently each time his little brother even tried to pick or eat his fingers. There was no need to turn to cannibalism. They were winning.

Jyushimatsu straightened up, facing the judge head on. He too, was determined to end this. All he wanted was to get back to living his peaceful everyday life and throw that 80 meter ball he always spoke of. He had been training hard before his hand was wrecked.

It was hard for Jyushimatsu to speak formally. He had never been good at talking in the first place and now he'd suddenly need to give a testimony. Although Choromatsu, as well as the nurse, had helped him practice, he was still very nervous whether he'd screw this one up or not. This was very important, after all.

"As you heard, I was in a coma with a broken hand", Jyushimatsu began, lifting up his injured hand. It was already much better, and could soon be freed from all the support. Jyushimatsu couldn't wait until he got free and would finally be able to use both of his hands again. It was hard to work with only one hand and Granny's shop was feeling the effects.

"After I woke up, I was confused. I couldn't understand what had happened", Jyushimatsu continued, "The doctor explained it all to me but I still felt so bad, used."

"So he was nice to you during that time?" the judge asked. The victim was doing great. For now, the judge would let Jyushimatsu continue. He showed no signs of extreme discomfort at the moment. Of course he was visibly nervous but it was to be expected from what the victim had went through. The situation itself was also pretty stressful.

"Yes, I had no idea he was a bad guy before he gave me the new medicine. When I asked him what they were for, he told me that they were just some new vitamins. I had taken both vitamins and other supplement during that time so I didn't really think it was something else. The meds could change daily. I had no reason to doubt him until the nausea hit", Jyushimatsu shivered as he recalled how bad he had felt after taking that pill, "I was sweaty and cold at the same time. I couldn't get out of bed or even eat."

"Is this true?" the judge made sure to ask the current doctor, who only nodded, pointing to a certain paper on the judge's desk. It had a record of Jyushimatsu's symptoms after the pill and how his condition had developed completed with blood test results and other test results.

"H-He was going to give me more", Jyushimatsu mumbled, "If my brothers hadn't been there he would've."

"It's alright now", the nurse reassured Jyushi, "You're alright."

"It was all for his own good!" the accused doctor suddenly stood up, slamming his handcuffed hands onto the table in front of him, "I have studied the drug for years! Don't you believe in my skills as a doctor?!"

"Silence!" the judge roared, "I've heard enough from you! Sit down!"

The police tried to restrict the man, but he was unstoppable. Blinded by a mix of range and pride. Pumped with adrenalin.

The doctor jumped over the table and marched right to Jyushimatsu, who looked absolutely terrified.

"Get back!" the judge told the accused, standing up from his seat to give his words more effect. He knew he wouldn't be able to get to the two in time if the man tried something funny, "Get away from the victim!"

It was clear that Jyushimatsu was too terrified to move or even try to defend himself. Though, what could he even do? With only one hand usable. Of course he could always kick the man but his strong point were his hands, not feet. He played baseball, not football.

The doctor didn't stop though, but grabbed Jyushimatsu by the neck, strangling him.

"I am right! I did nothing wrong!" the doctor screamed, "You're all wrong here! I only wanted to help! I wanted to save him!"

The man was unstable. His hands shook as he strangled Jyushimatsu, who was turning blue already.

"I only wanted to save him", the doctor whispered, "I didn't want him to end up like he did."

The nurse and Jyushimatsu's new doctor, along with the ones who had investigated the man knew what he was talking about.

Surprisingly, the man wasn't a total monster.

While he had studied in America he had gotten married to a young female student. It had been love at first sight and seemed like something out of a romance novel.

The couple's first child was born soon after the wedding. A beautiful baby boy.

The doctor couldn't have been happier. He had a beautiful wife and a beautiful son.

It all changed when the boy came to the age where he should've begun to talk. He didn't. He was also very fidgety. He simply couldn't sit still for even a minute.

Needless to say, the parents were worried sick and decided to take their child to the children's hospital.

From there they went to a psychologist as the doctor from the hospital had suggested.

The nurses had ran blood tests. There were also block tests and other similar stuff their son had to do. The psychologist took notes, a lot of them.

And from there they finally got their answer.

The psychologist sat down on the brown leather chair, crossed his legs and took out his notes before opening his mouth to tell the parents the news.

Their son had ADHD.

That was when the doctor got obsessed with how to treat the condition. He studied book after book about the subject, checking each and every form of treatment available. He even checked to see what was used before, thinking he could learn from the past.

Their boy grew up and went to school. Unfortunately, the other kids in school didn't take the boy's condition as well as the loving parents did.

He'd come back home bruised and crying, telling his dad how the kids had hit him and called him names all day. They had even followed him on his way back home and threw rocks at him.

When the bullying didn't end even after the parents told the school to take action, the family decided to move.

By that time, the effects of the bullying were visible on the small child already. He was much quieter and kept mostly to himself. He didn't get any friends in the new school, only new bullies.

The things finally escalated when the boy was on his sixth year of school.

He had simply had enough of it all.

He was found in his room one Sunday morning by the parents who had gone in to wake him up.

He had hung himself.

The child was brought to the hospital, where the young doctor told his colleagues to do whatever they could to save his child.

He was pronounced dead that evening.

The wife left soon after, leaving the doctor to live alone, surrounded by his books.

Even when the doctor moved back to Japan, he never forgot his late son. He always made sure to carry a small photograph of him, smiling widely with his mother.

When he had met Jyushimatsu, he was suddenly reminded of his son's ordeal once again. Just when he had thought that he had begun to forget. Old memories surfaced and it had been hard at times for the doctor to even look at his patient. He even looked like his late son. They had the same cheerful eyes.

The doctor had decided. He'd save this one.

The police tried their best to get to the two, but didn't dare to get closer. They feared of what the man would do if they made even one wrong move.

"Get off of the boy!" it was Granny, "You filthy fucker!"

The brothers' all flinched next to her. They had never heard Granny use such language or even act this way, so they were surprised to say the least. They had thought that Granny was the peace-loving one.

"What did you say?!" the doctor was furious, tightening his grip on Jyushimatsu. The doctor had one hand on Jyushimatsu's throat while the other held the injured hand behind Jyushi's back, restraining any movement from the limb.

"I told you to let the poor boy go! Or do you want me to come down there?!"

The doctor laughed, "And what could a senile old lady like you possibly do? Hit me with your crane?!"

That was exactly what Granny did. She threw her crane towards the man, hitting him right to the head. Granny had great aim. Throwing all those baseballs when she was younger really did end up being useful in the end.

The policemen jumped right into action when the doctor was off balance from the hit.

They managed to release Jyushimatsu, who collapsed onto the floor. His doctor and nurse ran right to his side to check if he was alright.

"I think we've all seen enough", the judge huffed, "Take the man away. I think we can all agree that he is guilty. He just attacked his victim, trying his best to silence him. If nothing, he is charged of violence towards an individual. Good luck if not even attempted murder."

"Agreed", the judge's right hand man nodded, "We have all come to an agreement that his man is indeed guilty as charged. He had illegal drugs in his possession, misused them and now even abused his victim."

"I conclude. I find this man guilty as charged. We'll discuss his sentence later on", the judge slammed his hammer down, "Now get him out of here so that the victim can calm down."

The doctor was taken away, all while he still tried to break free and get to Jyushimatsu. The police didn't let him, and almost carried him out of the room.

"The trial has ended", the judge finished, before standing up and making his way to Jyushimatsu.

"Is he alright? I'm sorry I didn't realize what was going on", he whispered to the nurse who was tending to Jyushimatsu's injuries, "The man must've had a mental breakdown or something. We'll get him checked out later."

Jyushimatsu had suffered trauma to his neck and hand. The nurse was holding an ice pack to Jyushi's neck, trying to lessen the bruises forming there. He hoped that the vocal cords or other important parts hadn't been harmed. Those would need to be checked later.

"It's okay", Jyushimatsu wheezed out, "You did what you had to. Thank you."

Large tears were rolling down Jyushi's cheeks. He was so relieved. He was finally free.

Osomatsu and the rest of the brothers soon came to the scene. The parents and Granny not that far behind. They all hugged Jyushimatsu, who still shook like a leaf.

"It's over", Choromatsu sighed.

"Mmm", Totty nodded, crying to Jyushi's shoulder, "Let's go home."

"Brother", Karamatsu cried, "Are you alright? Are you hurt?"

"I'm alright", Jyushi tried to laugh but it only came out as a weak wheeze, "But I can't breathe. You're strangling me."

The group immediately gave Jyushi some space.

"We'll need to check you out at the hospital first. Is that alright with you?" the doctor crouched down. He would've loved to go after his former colleague and give him some of his own medicine. Literally.

Jyushi nodded.

"Let's get you into the car", the nurse helped Jyushi up, "My boyfriend is here to take us to the hospital."

The boyfriend had actually been there to take his partner back home and was surprised when the group burst out the door. He was quick to recover though and welcomed Jyushi to the back seat of the car.

"We'll follow behind", Choromatsu told them.

Ichimatsu had gone with Jyushimatsu, as well as the doctor. Granny had fit into the car too. The car couldn't fit any more people though and the rest would need to take another car.

Good thing that the judge happened to hear their desperate conversation. He offered to drive them all the way to the hospital. He was finished for the day after all. He only would've had some paperwork to finish, but that could wait until tomorrow.

As the brothers had guessed, the man was a family man. So much so that he had a van. All of them fit in it just fine.

"What a nice car you have", Matsuzo complimented the family vehicle.

"Thank you. My wife decided that this would be the one for us. I have four kids back home", the judge laughed.

"Good luck", Matsuyo mumbled. She knew what that meant. Teenage years would be hell. She really could only hope that the man was strong enough to survive it all.

The whole group was now on their way to the hospital.

Jyushimatsu and the others in the car were the first ones to arrive. The group went right in through the main entryway. They told the nurses behind the desk to guide the ones arriving behind them to the room they would be.

The nurses could only nod, dumbfounded.

The doctor performed a check-up, making sure that Jyushimatsu's neck hadn't been injured. He also took an X-ray of the hand, making sure it hadn't been broken again or gotten worse.

Everything was fine. They had had luck. A lot of it.

The rest had arrived while Jyushimatsu had been in another room for the X-ray and were waiting for him and news of his condition when he was wheeled in. They stood up, faces contorted in worry, as Jyushimatsu tried his best to tell them that he was alright.

Jyushimatsu sat in a wheelchair. It was a policy. Jyushimatsu's legs were just fine, although they did feel like jelly.

"I have the honor to tell you all that the patient is fine. He didn't get any bad injuries but the neck will bruise. The hand will also be a bit sore", the doctor smiled as he told the group, "I'll give you some ice packs for that."

"Oh thank you", Matsuyo cried out, leaning to her husband for comfort, "My little baby."

"You may go home now", the nurse told them, "Shall I drive you there? I'll get us an ambulance. We can all fit on that."

The doctor laughed, "A patient driven out of the hospital in an ambulance. Well, why not?"

"Let's go home", Ichimatsu mumbled to Jyushimatsu's ear, helping him up.

"Hm", Jyushi nodded, tears forming in the corners of his eyes, "Let's go."


	37. Chapter 37 The Recovery

"Home sweet home, huh?" Osomatsu sighed as all eight of the family finally entered the house. He loosened up his tie and threw the suit jacket off of his shoulders. He wouldn't need those anymore. It was over. He wished that he wouldn't need to wear them again soon either. He hated formal wear and its stiffness.

"So glad it's finally over", Totty agreed, watching Osomatsu make a beeline to the sofa and jump on it.

"The lawyer you were talking about", Matsuyo whispered to Choromatsu as she took her shoes off and put her purse down, "He didn't do that much, did he? I don't think I heard him speak even once."

"Ah, yeah", Choromatsu mumbled, "Ichimatsu might've taken his pet tiger out for a walk in his neighborhood. The stares might've helped a bit too."

"And I here would've loved to think that the man had come to his senses and decided not to help that doctor", the mother sighed loudly. Her sons could be monsters if they wanted to.

"Maybe he did both", Matsuzo tried to tell his wife, "I mean he did absolutely nothing to defend the accused during the trial. He must've done the paperwork but decided not to defend."

"We can always believe", Choromatsu nodded. The lawyer apparently hadn't wanted to dirty his reputation with a case like this one so he bailed out the last minute, leaving the accused without any protection. That might be why the doctor suffered the breakdown which resulted in him being dragged out of the room.

Jyushimatsu was clearly tired. He had been nodding off during the car ride too, and now he simply told everyone that he would go straight to bed after a quick shower.

The family would've loved to throw a small party for their victory right there and then. But seeing how drained their little man was, they told him to just go and get all the sleep he wanted. They even promised to make him something small to eat if he wanted anything.

Jyushimatsu declined the snack and just went upstairs. He yawned loudly once again, showing everyone just how tired he really was.

The rest stayed downstairs for a little longer, letting Jyushimatsu have his time alone. They were sure he would appreciate it. A lot had happened today.

"We could at least take a beer", Osomatsu yawned from the sofa, "I mean we did pretty well today and all."

"Maybe we could. We've all been way too stressed these past few days", Choromatsu, of all people, agreed and went to fetch the drinks. He even remembered to get Ichimatsu and Karamatsu a can of soda instead of beer. They weren't drinkers. Karamatsu actually preferred barley tea.

"You just want to drink", Totty mumbled from where he had sat down on the floor.

Osomatsu shrugged. Maybe.

"Good job boys! I'm so proud of you all", Matsuyo smiled as she lifted her can up in the air.

The group toasted their cans and took a long sip out of their designated drinks.

They then sat down and continued to talk about the day and what they would do from now on.

"Totty, Choromatsu, has Homura contacted you two in any way?" Karamatsu suddenly asked as the conversation had shifted to the party they were going to have.

It had originally been Jyushimatsu's idea to have a small party when his cast was finally off of his hand. The brothers had just given it a small level up.

It was going to be awesome.

They had invited many of the friends they had made these past couple of months too. Jyushi's new doctor would be there, as well as his nurse and the boyfriend.

Granny had promised to let them use her place. She'd take care of the food and drinks for them too. The only doubt she had had of the whole thing was if her place would be big enough for all of them. Good thing she had a nice sized yard.

"Yeah, she texted me", Choromatsu told him, "I sent her a mail telling her everything that has been going on. She deserved to know and Jyushimatsu wasn't going to tell her anything."

Totty nodded, "What did she say?"

"She told me that she really appreciated me telling her all of it. She agreed that Jyushi is just too kind to tell these kind of things", Choromatsu said, "She'll come. She said that she might even stay for a little longer if her parents give her the permission."

"Brother will be so surprised", Karamatsu smiled. He'd love to see the two together again. They were such a good match.

"We need to be extra careful not to let Jyushimatsu know what is happening", Matsuyo told the group, "This is a surprise party, after all."

"But it will be held at Granny's. Doesn't Jyushimatsu work there? How is that ever going to work?" Matsuzo had to ask.

"Granny is a lot sneakier than you think", Osomatsu smiled, "Trust me. Jyushimatsu won't notice a thing. I'll try and prepare stuff tomorrow. Karamatsu, you can help me. It's not like you have more work than me."

The part-time bulletin board was still going but the brothers hadn't worked this past week. They were too focused with Jyushi's situation. Now they could focus their attention on preparing the party while the rest were busy doing their things.

"If you say so", Matsuyo had to agree.

And as expected, Jyushimatsu returned to work the following morning despite everyone, even Granny, telling him to take the week off and relax. He was knocking on the door early, all smiles and enthusiasm.

Granny had promised to teach him how to use the cash register and the oven this week. Up until this day, Jyushimatsu's only work had been to act as the muscles of the shop. He kneaded the dough and carried the sheets to the oven and out. He also cleaned the whole place after closing.

He was ready to learn so much more and work full-time. One day he hoped that Granny could sit down and watch him take care of the whole shop by himself. She'd only need to approve of the things going on sale and nothing else. She could pet the cats and drink tea while talking to the customers all day. She hadn't had the time for that before. Jyushi hoped to change that.

"I hope I'm not developing dementia or something. I believe I told you not to come to work this week", Granny laughed as she let Jyushi in. Batter was meowing at his feet the second he was inside and had gotten his shoes off.

"Good morning Batter", Jyushimatsu pet the feline. He tried to be careful but he still wasn't as skilled and gentle with animals as his big brother Ichimatsu. Not that Batter cared. If it was Jyushi, he'd let it slip.

"The two others are still eating their breakfast", Granny told, waving her hand towards the kitchen area.

"Good morning to you too!" Jyushi cheered as he and Granny moved to the shop to get things started.

Two meows could be heard as a reply.

"You press this button here to open the register. It makes a nice jingle", Granny explained to Jyushimatsu who was staring at the machine intently.

The two had already put the first patch of bread and pastries to the ovens and were now left to wait until they were done. Granny thought that she might as well teach Jyushi now.

"Like this?" Jyushi opened the register with ease.

"Yes. You can count the total price and change with it too", Granny praised Jyushi as she showed the next step. This one was a little harder. Jyushi wasn't that good with numbers.

"Good thing that this isn't algebra or anything or we'd both be screwed", Granny laughed as she watched Jyushi punch in the correct numbers. They had hope.

Jyushi nodded, "Mm! Even I can do this much. Just wait until I get the cast off and I'll be the master of the register."

Granny patted Jyushi's back, "I'll be waiting!"

"I'll do my best!" Jyushi promised.

The customers arrived shortly after the ovens were emptied and the contents put on display.

The early birds getting to work and wanting a quick breakfast on the go were usually the morning's first customers. And it was the case today as well.

Granny made sure to make a lot of coffee. It was sure to go fast. The caffeine deprived workers simply couldn't function before their day's first cup of coffee.

Everyone seemed happy to see that Jyushimatsu was back.

"Great to see that Granny can take it easy once again", a regular laughed as Jyushi greeted his dog, "We missed you."

The dog jumped to lick Jyushimatsu's face as if to tell him that he had missed him as well.

"Thank you", Jyushimatsu smiled as he gave the dog a treat he carried with him for situations like this, "I'm happy to be back."

The man paid for his coffee and bagel while balancing a leash, a suitcase full of papers and a wallet in one hand. He had some mad skills.

"See you again tomorrow!" he shouted before exiting the door.

The dog barked a couple of times as well, telling Jyushi that he'd see him again too.

"See you!" Jyushimatsu waved.

"You're doing better than I thought", Granny told Jyushi as they had a small tea pause in middle of the steady flood of customers, "You mastered it faster than me. I'm almost jealous."

Jyushimatsu smiled as he mixed in two sugar cubes into his cup of black tea, "Really? Was I that good?"

"You were! Didn't you hear the customers?" Granny laughed, "They loved your work! I think we even earned some more regulars back there."

Jyushimatsu couldn't help but blush at the compliment.

"Keep it up! No time to relax!" Granny flexed her back as she stood up to continue, "The pause is over. Back to work!"

Jyushimatsu had downed the scalding tea in seconds, "Yes!"

"You could've taken the cup with you", Granny mumbled, "Well, whatever. Just don't burn your mouth."

Good thing Jyushi didn't. It would've been awful to try and work after that.

Even after the working hours had ended, Granny and Jyushimatsu were busy.

They were making bread.

Jyushimatsu was.

Granny gave him the most basic of recipes and let Jyushi suggest stuff to add to it. Trial and error was the best way of learning how to bake, after all.

"Do you think sunflower seeds would fit?" Jyushimatsu was eyeing the wide variety of stuff to add to the dough, "What about dried apricots?"

"Anything you want!" Granny laughed as she watched Jyushi dump some of the two ingredients in.

Pumpkin seeds were next, as well as a drop of honey.

Granny was quite happy with the results. The ingredients Jyushimatsu had chosen weren't too bad and fit together quite nicely. The boy had learned something watching her bake the bread every morning, Granny was overjoyed to notice. She couldn't wait to taste the final product.

"And into the oven it goes!" Jyushimatsu carefully put the lump of dough into the hot oven. He had made some cuts as well as sprinkled some oats on top of the bread before putting it in. He hoped that that would make the crust really crispy and pretty.

Granny nodded, proud of Jyushi's experimentation. She told Jyushi to sprinkle some water on top as well, to make it extra crispy.

Jyushi did as told.

"Then we wait", Granny nodded, checking to see the time if Jyushi forgot.

Jyushimatsu flailed his hands in excitement, "Do you think it'll be any good? Do you think everyone will like it?"

"Of course! After all, it's something made by you!" Granny assured Jyushi, "If nothing else, they'll taste the love you put into baking it. And that tastes the best!"

Jyushi's eyes sparkled. He couldn't wait before he could taste his creation. He wondered how love tasted like.

Granny and Jyushi played with the cats while the bread was in the oven.

The two cats who hadn't come to greet Jyushi in the morning were now all over him. They were still shy but had warmed up to the sextruplets very quickly. Batter was sitting on Granny's lap, watching the cuddle session.

If the smell was anything to go by, the bread would taste heavenly.

"I think that it's done now", Granny told Jyushi, who was glancing the clock every other minute, "Let's go check it out."

Jyushimatsu sprung up and ran to the kitchen to see if Granny was right. The cats were lucky to be quick enough to jump off before or they would've flown off.

"It looks pretty! Golden bread!" Jyushi cheered as he peeked through the oven's small window.

"Then it must be ready!" Granny clapped her hands, giving Jyushimatsu the oven mitts to use, "Be careful. It's hot."

"I know", Jyushimatsu mumbled as he carefully opened the oven door, dodging the heat wave bursting out before sticking his gloved hand in and pulling the sheet out, the bread still on it.

Jyushimatsu then put the sheet onto the kitchen counter on another pair of oven mitts.

"It sure looks pretty", Granny agreed with a nod, "Now we need to wait a little while to let it cool."

"Why?" Jyushi whined. He wanted to have a taste now.

"It's too hot" Granny explained, "It would be too soft to cut too."

The two tried to cool the bread down with their glare alone. It didn't work that well.

"Is it cool now?" Jyushi sounded like a little kid asking his parents if they were there yet on a long and boring car ride.

"No, not yet", Granny told him, "Soon."

Guess she was the annoyed parent driving the cat then.

"How about now?"

"No."

After five minutes of the same thing, Granny gave up and announced the bread cool enough to taste.

"Cut it! Cut it!" Jyushimatsu clapped his hands as Granny took out a knife to cut the bread with. Granny didn't trust Jyushi with the knife quite yet. He could use the butter knife.

A cloud of steam burst out of the open seam as Granny cut two thick slices for them to taste.

Jyushi took out the butter and milk.

"Here you go", Granny gave Jyushi his slice, pouring them both a glass of milk afterwards.

"Thank you", Jyushi in turn, spread butter on both of their slices before serving Granny hers.

"Mmmm!" Jyushi smiled widely, mouth full of bread, "Soo-o good!"

Granny nodded. She wasn't a fan of sweeter breads but this one was good. The seeds and the crust made the bread. If she would've made it, she might've added in some other flour too, like barley or rye. But it wasn't for her to decide. This was Jyushimatsu's bread and he decided what would be put into it.

"Should we add this to the bread on sale?" Granny asked as she munched on another mouthful of delicious bread.

"Yeah!" Jyushi nodded, "Do you think the customers will like it?"

"Of course!" Granny told him, "Should we name it after you?"

"No, no", Jyushi shook his head furiously, "Can we name it the Sunflower bread?"

"Anything you want", Granny agreed as she doodled something down onto a post-it note she had lying on the kitchen counter. She then presented Jyushimatsu with a design for the crust. It was a sunflower. Simple, clean and easy enough to make.

"Wow! Can we make it look like that?" Jyushimatsu was jumping up and down now.

"Yes", Granny smiled, "I'll teach you how tomorrow."

Jyushimatsu had to return home.

The sun was already down by the time Granny and Jyushimatsu told each other their goodbyes and promised to see each other tomorrow morning. The cats had come to see Jyushi off too. All meowing by Granny's slipper-clad feet.

Jyushimatsu had a paper bag in his arms. It was the rest of the bread. He was going to serve it to his family and get their opinion on the taste.

As expected, everyone loved the bread. Matsuyo even cried a bit, telling Jyushimatsu how proud of him she was. She hadn't thought that her sons would ever learn how to cook properly. Miracles were real and they could happen.


	38. Chapter 38: It's Time to Celebrate!

"Yes, I think we can take all support off of the hand today", the doctor told Jyushimatsu after the check-up.

Jyushi had come in today to get his neck and hand checked. The neck had hurt this past week but it was just sore. Jyushi got a little massage from the nurse to help with that. As for the hand, it was doing great. Better than expected actually.

"Should I show you some stretches and other moves you can do to get the muscles warmed up and ready to go?" the nurse asked as he unraveled the bandages and threw them to the bin.

"I should show you how to treat the skin as well", he added as the smell hit him. The skin had been under different kinds of bandages and casts this past month or two. It was a kind way to tell him that his hand smelt. The skin also looked half dead.

Jyushimatsu nodded. He couldn't wait until he got to use his hand properly again. And he too had to admit, the hand smelt and looked awful.

"Let's soak it a bit first. To get rid of the dead skin", the nurse mumbled as he went to fetch a bowl of warm water.

The rest of the appointment was a pampering session for Jyushi and his hand. It was relaxing. So much so that Jyushi almost fell asleep.

Afterwards, the hand looked much more alive than before.

Jyushi got some nice hand cream to use for the hand. He was told to put some of it onto the hand after showers and baths to moisturize the skin. Jyushi nodded, trying his best to remember to do just that.

"Look Granny! I'm free!" Jyushimatsu returned to work the same afternoon.

Granny had been making the foods for the party and was surprised to say the least when Jyushi suddenly burst through the door. She almost dropped the cookies she had been carrying. They were made to look like little baseballs.

"H-Hey, Jyushi!" Granny smiled as she turned to face Jyushi, hiding the cookies in a cold oven, "You're back! That was quick."

"Hm", Jyushi nodded as he stepped back behind the counter to continue where he had left to before leaving. He had been counting the change and was now forced to start from the beginning. The appointment had messed up his calculations.

"Your hand looks much better", Granny smiled as she shook Jyushi's hand, testing to see how well it moved and if it hurt Jyushi to use it, "Did you get exercises to do?"

Jyushi nodded again, "I'll show them to you later. I wish I could just go and throw a ball already."

"That's what we all wish, dear", Granny laughed, "But we need to begin a bit more gently."

"I know", Jyushimatsu whined.

"I'll help you. You'll throw that 80 meters in no time at all. I promise", Granny pet Jyushi's head, comforting him. She'd look into his father's notes once more for some pro tips. She'd share the ones she found with Jyushi afterwards.

Jyushimatsu seemed pleased with that and returned to work with much more gusto. He got to use both of his hands again and the work got done twice as fast as a result. He even had time to help Granny with the baking.

"You did really well today", Granny praised Jyushi after work, "Just remember to rest once in a while. You didn't have any breaks today."

"I know", Jyushi smiled as he cuddled Batter who had jumped onto his shoulders, "I just wanted to use my hand. I missed it."

"If you continue to use it like that, I'll call your doctor", Granny threatened him jokingly. But honestly, she didn't want Jyushi to use his hand too much and end up with it back in a cast again. That would be a real downer.

Jyushimatsu laughed. He knew Granny would do that. She never made empty treats.

"I'll remember that", he told Granny.

"Good. Now, get back home and show the rest how good you look", Granny gave Jyushi a bag of leftover goods to take with him, sending him off.

"Yes!" Jyushi nodded and left. He told her that he would do the stretches today for the first time with Choromatsu. He'd show Granny them tomorrow when he knew how to do them properly.

"Look at my boy!" Matsuzo was the first one to notice, "You look great!"

"What, what?" Osomatsu stuck his head out from the kitchen to see what the commotion was about, "Jyushimatsu! You're back!"

Shit, Osomatsu had all their party stuff on the kitchen counter. He'd need to get rid of those and fast before Jyushi noticed them. Although the fifth brothers wasn't the sharpest pen in the bunch, he could count together one and one and come to the conclusion that they'd be having a party. He'd then begin to question why and when they had the party in the first place. And he wouldn't stop until he got the answer.

Osomatsu ran back to the kitchen soon after he had hugged and praised Jyushi, and hid the stuff. He'd continue when Jyushimatsu wasn't there to see. Good thing that Karamatsu had gone to plan the party with the nurse and his boyfriend. They'd be going to Granny's a bit later too. Jyushi couldn't question them.

The party would be tomorrow, and they still weren't done with the preparations. They were in a hurry but they also had to make sure Jyushimatsu still had no clue what was going on. It was harder said than done, Osomatsu had to conclude.

"Jyushi, let's take a picture", Totty came back from work and was all over Jyushi the moment he got in from the front door, "Come on."

Jyushimatsu was happy to use his hand and watch the family's reactions to him doing so.

"I'll do stretches with Choromatsu later", Jyushimatsu explained as he made a peace sign with his hand for Totty's photo, "You want to join?"

"Sure!" Totty smiled as he added tags to the picture before posting it online, "Choro is still at work though. He texted me that he'd be a bit late."

Lies, Choromatsu was out meeting Homura, who was coming to town today. She'd stay in an inn for tonight and join them all tomorrow. Choromatsu shared with her their plans for the day.

Homura had been bummed to hear that she wouldn't be able to meet Jyushimatsu right away, but soon gave up and decided to go with the brothers' plan. She'd make sure to give Jyushi a huge hug tomorrow when she finally met him face to face again.

Then, the day was finally there.

The family made sure to make it seem like a normal day for Jyushimatsu, who ate his breakfast with his family like any other morning. He had absolutely no clue.

Inside though, they were all bubbling with excitement and also a bit nervous, wondering if they had remembered everything.

"I'm off to work!" Jyushimatsu shouted from the door, "Bye!"

"See you later!" the parents told him.

Yes, they'd be seeing him very soon.

"Let's go!" Totty scremed as the group stood up, "We'll be late!"

They'd follow Jyushi to Granny's, where they'd all surprise him with the party.

Thy felt like stalkers or something following Jyushi like that, but it was how they had decided to do it.

"Let's party!" Osomatsu was pumped. Granny had promised to bake him all the things he loved, which meant everything. That made up for the fact that there was no alcohol served in the party.

Jyushimatsu had no idea anything was off even as he opened the door to Granny's.

"Good morn-", Jyushimatsu began but was interrupted by a group of people standing in the hallway.

"Surprise!" Granny laughed loudly, spreading her hands and hugging Jyushi tight.

"Wha- Huh?" Jyushimatsu was confused to say the least, "Why are you all here? What is this? I have work today!"

"No you don't!" Jyushi's doctor smiled, "All you're going to do today is party."

"Party hard", the boyfriend, whose hand was slung over his partner's shoulders, added with a grin. He was feeling only a little light-headed. The two had blown all the balloons used in decorating the place.

"I made sure to inform everyone", Granny told Jyushi, "They told you to have fun, nothing else."

So that was why everyone had bought so much stuff yesterday? They were preparing for a day without Granny.

"Hello!" the rest of the family came in after Jyushi, "Did we miss anything?"

"You're late!" the doctor told them, "I told you to be here early!"

"We couldn't! It wouldn't have been a surprise if we were gone by the time Jyushi woke up", Choromatsu argued.

The doctor only shrugged, telling them it would've worked out somehow.

"Come in!" Granny told them all and showed them to the living room where the cats were waiting for them.

The two newer additions were a bit doubtful to have that many people in the same space as them, but Batter had reassured them before, showing them that there was nothing to be afraid of.

"Hi Batter", Ichimatsu went to the cats, offering them his hand to sniff before scratching their chins, "How have you been? Sorry I haven't visited."

The cats didn't seem to mind and cuddled to Ichimatsu right away. The man was soon covered in felines. They even stayed on his shoulders and buried themselves in Ichimatsu's clothes as the man stood up to move.

"Pussy magnet", Osomatsu snickered.

Totty hit his big brother to the head, hushing him. No such jokes here.

The whole group sat around the living room, enjoying a glass of home-made juice. It was made from berries out of the garden right behind them, in the yard. It was sweet and cool. Just perfect.

There was a ring of a doorbell.

"Jyushi, I think that you should go get that", Choromatsu smiled, motioning Jyushi to stand up and go get it.

"Hmm", Jyushi nodded, leaving his glass onto a coffee table. He had his doubts. It was sure to be yet another surprise.

But when Jyushimatsu opened the door, he was faced with the smiling face of someone he had missed ever since they had parted.

"Hello, Jyushimatsu", it was Homura, carrying a huge bouquet of sunflowers which almost covered her entire face.

"Homura?!" well now Jyushi was surprised, if he hadn't been before, "What are you doing here? Weren't you supposed to be with your parents? What about school?"

Homura laughed that beautiful laugh of hers before answering, "Aren't I allowed to take a day off? I've been working hard, you know. I spoke with the teacher. She allowed it."

Jyushimatsu let out a breath. At least she hadn't run away.

"Can I come in, or are we supposed to stand here all day?" Homura smiled as he asked the baffled Jyushimatsu, who only waved her to come inside. He had no words.

"So this is the Homura I've heard of?" Granny asked Choromatsu as the two joined the rest once again, "She sure looks pretty."

Homura had offered Granny the flowers and she put them in a vase on the kitchen table. Granny made sure to tell Homura how beautiful the flowers were. They were from Homura's parents' place.

"Yes, the bus was a bit late but she texted me about it. I'm just glad she could make it. Look how happy Jyushimatsu is", Choromatsu told her.

"I know. I need to get a picture of this all. His smile is so wide", Granny sighed. She was happy to see her little boy so happy. It was really contagious too.

"Hey! The food is getting cold! Let's eat! Eat!" Osomatsu suddenly protested loudly from the floor he was sitting on since there was not enough space for everyone to sit on chairs.

And so they decided to eat. The table was set in the shop area since there was no room for such amount of food in anywhere else.

There was the bread, the one Jyushi had come up with. There were also cookies, cakes and cupcakes. Granny was the proudest of the giant sunflower shaped cake she had made. She couldn't wait to hear what Jyushimatsu thought of its taste.

Homura admitted to Granny that she had not eaten breakfast for this. She had heard from Totty that Granny was phenomenal when it came to cooking. She could also see all the love the woman put into making this all.

"It all looks so good!" the nurse's eyes were sparkling. After seeing only hospital food for god knows how long, this was a welcome change of scenery. He would make sure to ask for recipes later for him and his partner to try back home.

"Well, what are you waiting for? Dig in!" Granny smiled as she listened to Matsuyo go on and on how delicious everything looked. She told Granny that she'd need to come to their place some day so that she could treat her some of their family foods. Granny told that she'd love to come when she had a day off from work.

"Look, this is the bread I made", Jyushimatsu explained to Homura, who clapped her hands in delight.

"The design is so cute!" Homura complimented, "You made it all by yourself?"

Jyushi nodded proudly. The design Granny had shown him was now on the bread.

Jyushimatsu had a blush on his face from the compliment as he carefully cut Homura a slice.

"Here", Jyushi gave Homura the bread, "Do you want butter? A glass of milk?"

"I'll eat it like this. I wouldn't dare to put butter on it", Homura smiled kindly, "But I'd like a glass of milk thank you."

Jyushimatsu got Homura the glass of milk and they tasted the bread together.

"Hm! It's good!" Homura nodded her head as she savored the taste, "I need to learn the recipe! My mother would love this."

Jyushimatsu smiled widely. He was happy to see Homura's smile again.

"We can make it together later", he told Homura.

The group enjoyed the food and each other's company as they all sat by the shops' tables.

They were remembering all the fun stuff and laughed about it.

"-and then he just decided to buy a ton of plants to put to my garden. I hadn't even approved of it!" Granny laughed as she told the story how the brothers had surprised her by planting stuff to her garden. She told how even the cat had helped with the surprise. The strawberries in the cakes were actually from those exact plants. The strawberry bushes Jyushi had bought and planted for her.

"Jyushimatsu! You really did that?" Matsuyo's voice was a mix of a scold and a compliment. She didn't know which emotion to feel. It was Jyushi's money, he could do what he wanted with it. He was an adult now, too. But going shopping like that wasn't good. He'd need to learn how to make a shopping list one day.

Matsuzo gave his son the thumbs up. He was proud to have raised such a gentleman.

The group then decided to move to the yard to see the garden Granny had mentioned earlier. They wanted to see if it was as awesome as Granny made it sound like.

"Your tomatoes look amazing", the boyfriend commented, "We tried to grow some on our balcony but we only ended up with a couple tiny ones. It was very disappointing. At least they tasted good on a salad."

"You forgot to water it first", the nurse huffed, "And then you didn't even fertilize it. I tasted no love in those."

"I told you I'm sorry", the boyfriend mumbled, "You wouldn't even have noticed the difference between them and the ones from the market."

"They actually taste quite different", Granny smiled at the two men arguing now about what was the best way to cut tomatoes, "Go on, have a taste."

The duo took two bright red tomatoes, still slightly warm from the sunlight.

"You're right", the nurse commented, "How is it so sweet? So good!"

"We really need to plant some next year too and actually take care of them", the boyfriend agreed as he took another, "Too bad we work such long hours. Well, there are always the weekends."

While the three talked more about the tomatoes, the rest were by the strawberry bushes. They also checked to see if there were any apples in the trees yet. Of course there wasn't but it was nice to check.

"You planted these?" Totty asked Jyushi. He couldn't believe that Jyushimatsu had gotten Ichimatsu to actually do physical work.

"Hm! I got a lot of help", Jyushimatsu nodded.

"They look really nice", Homura added.

"Hey! You think we could throw some ball?" Osomatsu suddenly suggested. He had found a baseball in the bushes, probably left there by a cat. They played with what was available and with Granny, it was baseballs.

"Osomatsu!" Choromatsu whispered, "Don't! That's not a good subject!"

"Yeah!" Jyushimatsu cheered, "Let's do it!"

"Carefully", the doctor reminded Jyushi, "You can use the hand but that does not mean it should be pushed to the limit."

"I'll try and catch it", Homura told Jyushi as she ran to the other side of the yard.

Totty joined her, "Just like the old days, huh?"

Totty used to do this with Jyushi all the time when they had been younger. He really missed those days or innocent youth.

"Here I go!" Jyushi threw the first ball.

The doctor kept an eye on the group, making sure that Jyushimatsu used his hand properly and didn't overdo anything. He had to admit though, that throwing the ball was a nice workout for the muscles. As long as the ball wasn't really heavy, he would let Jyushi throw it.

Homura caught the gentle throw easily, bringing it up to show Jyushi that she had it.

"Great catch!" Totty clapped his hands, "Let me try the next one."

"Sure!" Homura smiled as she threw the ball back to Jyushimatsu.

That continued for a while.

Karamatsu and Ichimatsu actually joined them at one point, trying to catch the ball from the air on the way to Totty and Homura.

Osomatsu cheered them all on. Not really joining in on the fun, even though he had been the one to suggest the whole thing in the first place.

The day was already turning to night by the time the group returned inside. Good thing that the weather had been so good all day. Had it rained, it wouldn't have been as nice.

Some of them had to leave already. They had work the following day or were otherwise forced to leave early.

The nurse and his partner were the first to leave. Although the nurse had a day off, his partner would have to wake up early for work.

They offered to drive the doctor home, so he, too, left.

"Remember to take it easy", the doctor reminded Jyushi, "I'll see you in a week for another check-up. I only want to see improvement when I check the hand."

"Have fun! It's your party, after all", the nurse smiled, slamming the car door to the doctor's face, silencing him.

"We'll see you later", the boyfriend waved from the driver's seat.

"Yeah!" Jyushi nodded, "See you!"

Matsuzo and Matsuyo were next to leave. They told the boys to be back home before midnight. They were too old to party all night. They needed their precious sleep. They still hadn't unpacked all of their stuff either so they had some work to do the next day.

The brothers, Granny and Homura went back into the house and decided to have a cup of tea and just talk.

"Your doctor was so nice", Homura told Jyushi, "The nurse was too. You're so lucky to have them."

Jyushimatsu stopped stirring his tea. That was a sensitive subject.

Homura seemed to notice the awkwardness of the situation and added, "No, no! I just meant in general. I-I, never mind. That was the wrong thing to say."

"It's okay", Jyushi smiled, "I have a good doctor now. That's the important thing."

The rest of the sextruplets nodded. They agreed with their brother fully.

They spoke for a couple of hours about mundane things like work and Homura's studies. She told them how much she enjoyed being in school once again. Her teacher was super nice too, although she gave them a ton of homework every day.

The brothers shivered. They didn't miss homework or studying at all. They were happy to be out of school even if that meant no work and no money.

"I'm staying at an inn a couple stops away", Homura explained as she put her shoes on. It was time for her to leave as well. She was going to come back tomorrow and join Granny and Jyushi in their work. She had to wake up early to make it in time.

"You could stay here", Granny pointed out, "Why don't you bring your luggage with you tomorrow and sleep here for the rest of your stay?"

"I-I could never! You're too kind!" Homura blushed, waving her hands around.

"I insist", Granny smiled, "I bet Jyushi has already told you that I always get what I want. Just bring it. The more the merrier."

"Thank you so much", Homura hugged Granny tightly, tears in her eyes. She was a student, so money was always a problem. Things like this were like a dream come true, although she did have a part-time job back home and a small amount of money saved up for situations like these. She would also love to talk with Granny more.

"We'll see you tomorrow. Be here in time", Granny smiled, petting Homura's back.

The other sextruplets had already left, wanting to give Jyushi and Homura some privacy. Now Granny, too, retreated back into the house.

"Yes, thank you again, so much", Homura waved to Granny.

Jyushi would walk Homura to the nearest bus stop. He carried a bag of bread for Homura to have as breakfast.

"It was really fun", Homura told Jyushi as they neared the stop, "They are all such nice people."

"Hm!" Jyushi agreed, "Do you think you can work the register tomorrow? I was thinking about practicing my baking skills."

"Of course! I'm a fast learner", Homura assured Jyushi, "Just leave it to me!"

It had begun to rain somewhere during the early night, and Homura was holding an umbrella for the both of them. They walked side to side, very close.

"Ah, that's my bus", Homura said as she spotted the approaching vehicle and waved for it to stop.

"I'll see you tomorrow then", Jyushimatsu smiled his usual smile, "It was nice to see you again. I mean we write letters but speaking face to face is-."

Suddenly, there were lips on Jyushi's. Homura was kissing him.

"I know. I wanted to meet you too", she quickly retreated, a blush on her face as the bus's doors closed in front of Jyushi's face. Homura waved Jyushi from the window as the bus begun to move.

Jyushimatsu stayed still for five minutes. He got a kiss. Homura had kissed him.

He looked absolutely dumb standing there, holding an umbrella in the rainy night.

Jyushimatsu walked back home in a daze.

The brothers didn't question his dreamy behavior when he returned.

Jyushi honestly looked like he was sleepwalking as he went upstairs to brush his teeth and get to bed.

He had a smile on his face, so the brothers knew it couldn't have been anything bad.

They already had a hunch of what had happened.

Jyushimatsu could tell them the details tomorrow since they were sure to ask for them.


	39. Chapter 39: The Bittersweet End

It's been five years since the whole thing with the truck, the broken arm and the nightmare of a doctor. Some things have changed with the sextruplets while some remain the same as ever.

Jyushimatsu was now a married man. He proposed to his long-time girlfriend Homura two years ago on a date to the sunflower fields. Homura had of course gotten teary-eye but said yes. The wedding was held soon after.

It was a double wedding. And as was the brothers' usual style, it was big and crazy.

Osomatsu was getting married too. Much to everyone's shock.

All his years of gambling had finally paid off when he won the lottery. He was a rich man. He had finally managed to get Totoko to date him too and the two decided that they might as well get married. It had all seemed like a joke or a publicity stunt, and the two seemed to think of it as one. They were more like two best friends than lovers. Totoko had taken over her parents' fish business while Osomatsu made it big on social media, making videos of him doing pranks and eating strange foods.

The rest of the brothers had also moved out and began lives of their own. Much to the parents' relief. They were getting tired of adult babies living under their roof. Now they could finally relax and spend their retirement like any other person.

Choromatsu has moved on from his old business and started one of his own. He made it his mission to help long-time unemployed people by getting them on their feet. He first offered them a job at his place, which was a second-hand shop run with donations and help from the community. While working there, Choromatsu spoke with the people and made sure that they got their life together and a new direction in life. Many of the former employees went back to school or found another job after leaving Choromatsu's place and were sure to come back to tell their thanks. Choromatsu was just happy to help. He knew very well how the people he helped felt like.

Karamatsu has gone back to school and studied acting. He currently lived with Chibita because it was just convenient. There was both company and good food. His wish now was to someday move to New York, continue his acting there and make it big in the business. He won't be leaving Chibita behind though. He wants to take him along so that he can make and sell the world's best Oden in the big city. But for now, they could only dream. Karamatsu doesn't even have acting roles back home in Japan. Maybe it's his style of clothing or his narcissistic behavior. That still hadn't changed from what it used to be.

Totty has moved to Tokyo and opened a café of his own there. It's a stylish but small place and is popular with the young. He's also an internet persona and a model. The people working for him at the café are all there through Choromatsu. Totty kind of worked as the Tokyo's cell of the employment business.

Ichimatsu has stayed working for the shelter. He has had an upgrade too. Ichimatsu is now a vet. He studied to become one and is now especially well known amongst the animals who come to him. He has even conquered his fear of dogs, kind of. The big ones are still a bit of a problem. Ichimatsu lives in the same neighborhood as Jyushimatsu and Homura and is their regular. He lives with their food to be honest.

Jyushimatsu and Homura live at Granny's now.

Granny herself died three years ago. She had slipped away in her sleep feeling absolutely no pain.

The doctors had told them that her heart had simply given in with old age. Her mind had stayed strong until the end even though her body failed her. She would've loved to live for ten years or more, as she would always tell everyone.

Jyushimatsu had been the one to find her when he came to work that day. She had looked so serene just lying there on her bed. Jyushimatsu had a hard time understanding that she was gone at first, but he slowly came to terms with it. Homura had been there for him through it all and it must be one of the reasons he managed.

The funeral was a small one. Granny didn't have any family left and she had only a handful of friends besides the Matsunos and her regular customers. Granny would've never wanted anyone to mourn her, so the group decided to celebrate her life instead. They put sunflowers onto the grave and talked about their memories with her and what she had done for them. No one had anything bad to say about her. Only that she was maybe a bit too stubborn for her own good.

Granny's will told to give her meager saving to the shelter Ichimatsu worked in. They had helped her with the cats so much. She wanted to pay them back.

Her place and other immediate possession went to Jyushimatsu and Homura.

She had always made Jyushimatsu to promise her that he would continue her work if something was to happen to her. She had been so proud of Jyushimatsu's skills and believed that he could do it.

Jyushimatsu wanted to honor Granny's last wish and spend over a year learning all of her recipes by heart. He knew them all down to the smallest pinch of salt by now. Homura, too, began to learn the necessary skills needed to run a bakery. She worked the register and served the customers while Jyushimatsu made the items they sold. The customers still missed Granny, but came to love the sunny young couple in charge.

Batter, Stubby and Ginger now lived with the young couple.

They had also adopted a huge male German Shepherd they named Fido, meaning 'I am Faithful' in Latin. That was exactly what the dog was. He guarded the shop, greeting every customer. He was extra gentle with children and absolutely loved the attention he got from them. He didn't even flinch when some of them pulled his ears of stepped on his tail by accident.

The two were never meant to get a dog when they already had three cats. They had been visiting Ichimatsu to get the cats checked out when Homura had ventured to the dog section. There she had spotted Fido, who had been at the shelter for two years after being abused and abandoned by his old owner. Homura decided right there and then that they had room for another four legged friend. Jyushimatsu agreed after seeing the dog.

All six of the brothers had decided to reunite on their birthday. They'd have only a small party at Jyushimatsu's since no one except Osomatsu was excited about birthdays now that they were in their late twenties.

"Jyushi! My man!" Osomatsu was the first to arrive, for once. Totoko wasn't with him today. He'd later explain that she had some important business to take part in. Something about a problem with their tuna provider. Totoko had packed an arsenal of weapons with her so it must've been something rather serious.

Fido jumped to greet the guest, wagging his tail wildly. He had been graving for attention all day.

"Hello to you too, big boy! Guarding the house, are you?" Osomatsu played with the dog as he was almost tackled by the weight the dog was leaning onto him. He had actually brought a bone for Fido to munch on. The dog took off to his bed right after betting the treat.

"Osomatsu!" Jyushimatsu greeted Osomatsu. He had already closed the shop for the day and had been cleaning the floor when Osomatsu came in, "You're early."

"Yes I am!" Osomatsu huffed proud, "I love parties."

"You love them too much. There was an article about you in the paper again", it was Choromatsu. He was still dressed for work and had a suitcase full of papers with him.

"I was? Show me later!" Osomatsu laughed.

Ichimatsu and Karamatsu came in at the same time.

Ichimatsu told Jyushi that they had met halfway. They had not come together. Jyushimatsu only nodded. Ichimatsu still didn't like the second oldest for some reason. Childhood trauma, maybe?

Totty was the last one to arrive, having missed his original train.

"I'm sorry! The train was gone by the time I finally got to the station!" Totty told Jyushi as he tried to catch his breath. He had run all the way there.

"That means you were late", Osomatsu laughed.

"I had a meeting with a former employee. Her had just gotten fired and was super depressed about it", Totty explained.

"Well aren't you popular", Choromatsu sighed, offering Totty a business card of one of his men. He told Totty to call him. He was in charge of hiring new people to the company and was sure to be able to help Totty's friend.

"Well, now that we're all here", Jyushimatsu waved the guests to sit down, "I'll go get us something to snack on."

"I can get it, dear", Homura told Jyushi from the rocking chair she was sitting on. She was knitting a scarf. Knitting was her new hobby. She really enjoyed making mittens, socks and wooly hats. She had actually also made the brothers matching sweaters.

"No, no. I'll get it", Jyushimatsu gave Homura a kiss onto the forehead as he passed her on the way to the kitchen, "You just sit down and rest."

"Homura, you've gotten fuller from when I last saw you", it was Osomatsu's nice way of telling Homura that she had gotten fat, "Have you changed your diet?"

Both Choromatsu and Totty hit the oldest hard to the head. He could be so rude sometimes.

"Well, thank you", Homura smiled, "You're not the only one telling me that."

"C-Could it be-", Karamatsu was the first to connect the dots.

"Congratulation, you're all going to be uncles!" Jyushimatsu told them as he re-entered the room carrying a tray with cups of tea on it, "We were meant to tell you earlier but we didn't know how. Guess the cat's out of the bag now."

"We're pregnant", Homura added with a smile.

"Whaaaaat?!" Osomatsu scremed, "There's no way you got the buns into the oven before me!"

Another hit to the head.

"Congratulations!" Karamatsu was by Homura's side, holding her hand in his, "You look marvelous even in this condition."

"How long do we need to wait?" Totty asked. He was on his phone, telling his followers the happy news.

"A month maybe", Homura said, "The doctor has been checking on us quite regularly."

It was the same doctor who had taken care of Jyushimatsu so well all those years ago. He was originally a children's doctor after all. The nurse was the same too. They had both insisted on working on the case and Homura hadn't said no after hearing so much good things about them.

"Do you know the gender yet? How about the name?" Choromatsu asked them. He loved children despite not even having a girlfriend himself.

"The gender. The names", Jyushimatsu grinned, proud.

"No way", Choromatsu shook his head, "I know it's in the genes but."

"We're having twin girls, Yuuka and Himawari Matsuno", Homura put a hand on her baby bump and gave it a loving pat. One child was named after Granny while the other after the couple's, and Granny's, favorite flower.

Choromatsu let out a breath, "At least there are only two. Congratulations."

"We wouldn't need another set of sextruplets in this town", Totty agreed, "Mom would get a heart attack."

"Have you told her yet?" Karamatsu asked, carefully putting his hand onto the baby bump after getting the permission from Homura.

"Yes, she does not know the details yet though", Jyushimatsu said as he watched Karamatsu get kicked by one of the girls, "They've been quite active these past months."

"It's magic!" Karamatsu's eyes were sparkling. He had never felt a baby kick before.

"No it's not", Totty mumbled as he too felt the belly.

"Have you been able to work?" Choromatsu asked Homura, "Should I find you a helper?"

"I'm alright. I do what I can and Jyushi demands that he do the rest for me", Homura laughed.

"I can't help her with the pregnancy so I do everything else I can", Jyushimatsu explained, putting a hand onto Homura's shoulder, "I'm busier than usual but it's nothing compared to what Homura is going through."

"Just don't push yourself too hard, both of you", Totty told them.

The babies were born the expected day.

Homura's water had broken while serving a customer. A taxi had been called by one of the customers when Jyushimatsu was too panicked to do anything smart. When Homura finally got her man under control she told him to get her hospital bag and get her to the car. Jyushimatsu did just as told, fidgeting on his car seat the whole way to the hospital, holding Homura's hand. If he wasn't, he would've surely been out of the door already. He was that stressed out by the situation. He had absolutely no idea how births worked. Of course he had learned the basic stuff on biology class but his wife was the one giving birth right there and now. It wasn't text and theory on some book's pages. It was reality.

The rest of the family was called, all arriving as fast as they could.

By the time they got to the room, the work was already done. Homura had been quick and the babies clearly in a rush to get out. It had taken two hours in total since the water broke.

Karamatsu and the parents were the first ones to get there. Karamatsu had even had the time to buy flowers and a balloon. The parents had a handmade gift, a warm blanket.

"Look at you!" Karamatsu leaned closer to his brother to get a good look of the two bundles on Jyushimatsu's lap. Homura was having a small nap after the ordeal and was woken up by the visitors.

"Two healthy baby girls", the nurse smiled as he greeted Karamatsu with a hug, "Their mother is a trooper. I don't think I've ever seen such a quick delivery in my life. The doctor already approved of the two, too. They're both in perfect health."

"They look just like their mother", Matsuyo told Homura, who tried to sit up on the bed.

Matsuyo helped her. She put the bed up and gave her an extra pillow to lean on. Homura thanked her with a tired smile, taking a look at her two precious babies sleeping on their father's lap.

"They have their father's eyes", Homura whispered.

"To be honest, I was shocked when I saw two babies!" Matsuzo laughed, "It really took me back. I had almost pissed myself when the doctor told us that we had sextruplets."

"You should've seen his face", Matsuyo added, "He wasn't even the one who had to push them out and he suddenly looked much more tired than I was."

"I can imagine", Homura smiled, taking one of the girls onto her lap, "Jyushimatsu was excited when he heard the news."

"I'd love to have a baby girl to take care of", Karamatsu shrugged, agreeing with his little brother. He was getting jealous. Two of his close friends were now fathers to cute baby girls. Jyushimatsu was one, the other one was Jyushimatsu's nurse who had adopted a little girl with his boyfriend, now husband. They had asked Karamatsu to become the girl's godfather. He had, of course, said yes and began to spoil her rotten, just like her parents did. He'd often look after the girl if the parents had something come up with work, meaning they'd need to stay for longer. She sometimes even came to Karamatsu and Chibita's place to stay for the night or just to play. Chibita had fallen in love with the girl after she had praised his oden, telling him it was the best in the whole world.

"I can't believe that I'm finally a grandmother! Oh, how long have I waited for this day!" Matsuyo sighed as she got to hold the baby previously on Jyushi's lap. It was Yuuka, who was really calm for a newborn.

"She really likes you", Homura smiled. She sent a picture to her parents who couldn't make it to the hospital today. They'd come see them tomorrow.

"And I like her", Matsuyo nodded, "Just look at your little nose! Such a little cutie! I wish I had had girls."

"There she goes again", Matsuzo sighed, playing with the baby's tiny hands and feet.

The rest of the brothers dropped in one after another. All brought something along.

Choromatsu brought two mobiles. His employees had wanted to make something for the soon to be uncle, so they made a pair of mobiles. They even played music. Choromatsu really had people with many talents working for him. Homura and Jyushimatsu were sure that the girls would love them. They'd put them on their cribs.

Totty brought stuffed animals. Every baby needed a first stuffed animal.

Todomatsu had begun to sew during the little free time he had. He was quite good, although the designs might seem a bit weird to some.

"Here you go girls. A gift from uncle Totty", Todomatsu smiled as he handed each of the girls a toy, "I'll take a picture so stay still for a minute, okay?"

"You wish", Jyushimatsu smiled as he watched Totty try and get a picture that was not shaky. He'd need to wait until the girls were asleep again.

Himawari had gotten a lion. It had a mane of sunflower petals and a pink bow on his tail. The material was super soft and durable. Totty wanted the toy to last for a long time.

Yuuka's plush toy was a cat. It looked unmistakably like Batter. It even had a red ribbon on its neck. It was made out of the same material as Himawari's, durable and soft.

"They love them", Homura told Totty with a smile, "Your work is as amazing as ever."

"Thank you", Totty blushed, "I could design some clothes too, if you'd like."

"You can send me the pictures", Homura nodded. Totty should sell his designs already. Homura thought that they were adorable.

Ichimatsu came later in the evening. He had been in the middle of an important surgery when Jyushimatu had called him to let him know that he was now officially an uncle. Ichimatsu finished the job and was just about to leave when there was another critical case.

Jyushimatsu told Ichimatsu to take all the time he needed. They wouldn't mind.

"Am I late?" Ichimatsu came in. He was still in his vet uniform. He had only thrown his white coat off before coming, "I had a critical case come in and had to take care of that."

"No you're not", Jyushimatsu gave his big brother a hug, showing him to the crib in which the girls were sleeping in, "Is the patient okay now? That's all I need to know."

"Yes. A bloated dog, put the little one to rest before coming here."

"Then it's alright", Jyushimatsu nodded, pointing out the girls to Ichimatsu, who only nodded, admiring the little ones.

Ichimatsu had brought the girls books. He told Homura that the animals loved listening to him read these exact books to them while they were recovering. Homura only nodded, not daring to tell Ichimatsu that her daughters weren't animals. She had meant to buy the girls book earlier, so this was perfect.

Osomatsu was the last one to arrive and didn't seem even a bit sorry about it.

Totoko, who had come with Osomatsu this time, did apologize.

They had had a meeting with the company that sold their merchandise. They had ran into some trouble with their manager and the company's guy. In the end Totoko had told them a couple words of wisdom and managed to end the meeting on a positive note.

The two brought the babies a whole tuna.

Osomatsu of course had no idea what was a fitting gift for a small baby, but that even Totoko. The brothers could only guess that the fish had been Totoko's idea.

"You can come fetch the fish from the store later", Totoko told Homura. The two had become rather close during these past couple years. They were like best friends.

"We wouldn't be so stupid to bring a fish into a hospital!" Osomatsu nodded, "The nurses wouldn't let us in and the fish would go bad before you could eat it."

"That's not the point", the brothers sighed.

The bakery had two new workers. Himawari and Yuuka wanted to be by their parents every minute they were awake. The solution. The twins got baby chairs in the shop where they could watch the parents work as well as greet the customers.

Fido would guard the two. The dog had even moved his bed next to the chairs on his own.

Himawari was the calm one. She was also a bit shy and greeted only the regulars she already knew. As for her uncles, she preferred Choromatsu and Ichimatsu.

Yuuka was just like the woman she was named after. She was screaming and greeting everyone who came in. She was a social butterfly. She absolutely loved to play with Osomatsu, Totty and Karamatsu, who felt the same way about her.

"Hello girls! Ready for your outing?" Totty came for a visit. He had planned to only come to drop off some clothes for Homura but when he had heard that the family was planning to go to the nearest park to have some fun, he decided to join.

"Tot!" Yuuka squealed, flailing her arms and legs around.

"Hello!" Totty smiled, poking Yuuka's nose.

"Totti!" Himawari was pouting. She wanted attention too.

"Yes yes", Totty ruffled Himawari's brown locks.

The rest of the brothers would join them as well. They often had outings like this, where friends and family joined the small family of four. Everyone liked it, so there was no reason to stop doing them.

"I closed the shop", Jyushimatsu emerged from the kitchen, "Are we ready to go?"

Jyushimatsu had Fido tailing him. The dog would come with them as well. He wasn't going to let the baby girls out of his sight. He was a true guardian dog by heart.

"Yes. I packed the girls' stuff", Homura told Jyushimatsu as she put the girls to a stroller.

"Then let's go!"

The brothers were in the park waiting for the family and Totty.

"Took you long enough!" Osomatsu huffed.

"Osomatsu, you were almost late yourself", Choromatsu jabbed his brother's side, "Don't scold others."

"Hello girls! How are you doing today?" Karamatsu was by the babies' side right away, lifting Yuuka up to his arms. The girl had wanted to be lift up, so it was okay.

"Sorry, sorry! There were a lot of customers today", Jyushi laughed as he let Fido loose.

The dog ran right to Ichimatsu's side. Slowing down and sitting by the man's feet before Ichimatsu could get spooked.

"Fido really likes you", Homura smiled, "Maybe he knows what you do for work."

Ichimatsu carefully pet the panting dog and nodded. Fido was a dog he could handle. He was so gentle and well-behaved.

"I brought some food with me. Why don't we sit down and have a little picnic?" Choromatsu suggested as he lifted up a basket he had been carrying. He had had the time to make some sandwiches for once. Usually he was too busy with work to even think about making food himself. Instant food had become his breakfast, lunch and dinner with the side of Chibita's oden every once in a while.

"Sure", Jyushi agreed, "Do you have anything for the girls?"

"I got some baby food. Handmade."

"Sounds good. Never knew you were one to use the kitchen", Jyushi smiled as he inspected the jars Choromatsu gave him. They looked great. The girls were sure to like them.

The whole group sat on the grass under a large tree. It was their favorite spot it the whole park. The tree had been there ever since the sextruplets had played in the park as little boys.

Choromatsu gave out the food to everyone while Karamatsu poured the drinks.

"Everyone! Say cheese!" Totty had taken out his phone and was about to take a photo of them all. He already had a folder full of family photos like this but he wanted to add a couple more.

"Cheese!" everyone smiled together. The babies just looked confused. They didn't get the point.

Life was good.


End file.
